


Holiday Traditions

by MoonCat457



Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Genre: Candy Canes, Christmas, Christmas Cookies, Christmas Decorations, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Presents, Christmas Tree, Dreidel, Falling In Love, Ficlet Collection, Fireplaces, First Kiss, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gingerbread House, Hanukkah, Hot Chocolate, Ice Skating, M/M, Marriage Proposal, Prompt Fic, Santa Claus - Freeform, Seasonal, Slow Burn, Snow, Snowball Fight, Snowman, Sweaters, Traditions, Tumblr Prompt, Wedding, Winter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-02
Updated: 2021-01-18
Packaged: 2021-03-11 01:21:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 30
Words: 22,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28296696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MoonCat457/pseuds/MoonCat457
Summary: Thirty-one winter moments over the years between Remus and Sirius.
Relationships: Minor James Potter/Lily Evans Potter - Relationship, Sirius Black/Remus Lupin, minor Dorcas Meadows/Marlene McKinnon
Comments: 5
Kudos: 28





	1. Candy Canes

**Author's Note:**

> These were all written for RJL’s Wolfstar Holidays 2020. I wrote them out of order because of how the prompts fell, but now I’ve put them in chronological order and edited for continuity’s sake.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus’ mom sends him a package of candy canes, which he shares with his new friend, Sirius.

###  **December 1, 1971**

The door to the dorm creaked open slowly, and Remus’ roommate, Sirius, poked his head through the door. “Remus?”

“Here,” Remus called from behind his partially closed bed curtains.

Sirius crept into the room, which had the lights dimmed as if it were time for bed, despite it only being 6:30 pm. “You didn’t come down to dinner,” Sirius said. “Are you feeling poorly? Do you need Madame Pomfrey?”

Remus wanted to say that he was fine, just tired, but instead, all that came out was, “You noticed that I wasn’t at dinner?”

Sirius pulled the curtains back more to find Remus lying in bed with what looked like a muggle book on his lap. “Of course, I did. We’re friends, and friends notice when their other friends are missing.” He cocked his head as he took in the other boy’s tired expression. “Are you sure you’re feeling alright? I brought you some food, but if you aren’t feeling well, we should probably go down to the hospital wing.”

“You brought me dinner?” Remus asked softly.

Sirius smiled brightly. “Friends also nick food from the Great Hall for their other friends.” He produced a napkin filled with meat pies and rolls and handed it to him.

“Thank you. I’m fine. Just overly tired today is all,” Remus said lamely. “If I’m not better by morning, I’ll go, I promise.”

“So, is this the monthly chocolate delivery?” Sirius asked, changing the subject.

“What?”

He gestured to the package on the side table. “Your mum, I noticed she sends you a huge stash of chocolate every month.”

“You pay attention to that?” Remus asked as he chewed.

“Remus, it’s like, way more chocolate than a normal person could eat in a month—hang on, what’s this?” He held up a candy cane out of the package.

“Sirius, I know you’re a pure-blood wizard, but there’s no way you don’t know what a candy cane is,” Remus quipped before he could stop himself.

“I know it’s a candy cane!” Sirius exclaimed in exasperation. Then a sly smile spread on his face. “You’re secretly snarky, aren’t you?”

Remus smiled but didn’t say anything.

“I’m just surprised that you’re willing to eat other candy, is all. You’re a chocolate bloke. It’s basically your defining characteristic besides the jumpers. James is the Quidditch friend, Peter is the chess friend, and you’re the chocolate and jumpers friend.”

Remus’ stomach flopped. He liked the idea that something besides the impending full moon could define him. He also liked the idea that he fit in a friend group. “Which friend are you?”

“The rebellious one, obviously,” Sirius replied with a cheeky grin. He looked at the giant candy cane in his hand one more time before returning it to the package.

“Do you want one?” Remus asked, catching the longing look in his friend’s eye.

“Really?”

“Yeah. I’ve got plenty.”

Sirius’ smile softened, and he picked a smaller candy cane out of the box before sitting on the edge of the bed. “I’ll take a small one, though, in case I don’t like them.”

“You’ve never had a candy cane?”

“Mother didn’t do the whole Christmas cheer thing,” he mumbled, staring at his hands.

“No baking cookies, or Christmas trees, or presents?”

“My Uncle Alphard got me a sneakoscope once, but my mother confiscated it.”

Remus frowned and gave Sirius a long look. He always thought he had things hard growing up with lycanthropy, but he grew up in a home of love at least, and that was something he took for granted.

“Am I missing much?” Sirius asked tentatively.

“Not anymore, you aren’t,” Remus said because, at that moment, he swore to himself that he was going to introduce his new friend to every family holiday tradition he had growing up.


	2. Blizzard

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A blizzard cancels outdoor classes so the marauders decide to take advantage of their afternoon off.

###  **December 14, 1971**

“Lads, lads, lads!” James shouted as he ran through the great hall, drawing curious looks from a few older students at the nearby Ravenclaw table. He stopped and hopped into his usual seat at the Gryffindor table. 

“What’s got you all…” Sirius waved his hand to reference James’ general excited demeanor. 

“Classes are canceled!” 

“All classes?” Remus asked, looking up from the Herbology homework he still hadn’t finished. “That seems highly unlikely.” 

“Really? You don’t think that’s something Dumbledore would do?” Sirius asked, his eyebrow raised. 

“More like McGonagall wouldn’t let him,” James retorted, eliciting a chuckle from Peter, who finally looked up from his Herbology homework. “But no. The snowstorm has turned into a full-on blizzard, so they had to cancel all outdoor classes. Which means...” 

Peter let out a triumphant laugh and slammed his copy of _1000 Magical Herbs and Fungi_ shut. “No Herbology today!” 

“Exactly Petey, my boy!” James grabbed a roll off of one of the nearby magically refilling plates and ate half of it in one bite. 

“So you can put that away, Remus.” Sirius nudged him in the ribs 

“Just give me five minutes,” Remus protested. “I’m nearly finished, anyway.” 

“Swot,” he teased, sticking his tongue out, and Remus rolled his eyes in response. 

“Is he really a swot if he decided to stay up reading a muggle mystery novel instead of doing his assignment last night like us?” James countered. 

“Good point. But anyway, what do we want to do with our newly free afternoon?” 

“We could explore the castle?” Peter suggested. “I found a secret corridor when I got lost on the way to charms last week that smelled like chocolate, but I can’t find it again.” 

“Chocolate, you say?” James asked, leaning forward on the table intently. 

“A good contender. We could also play a prank on Slytherin again,” Sirius offered. 

“We did that last week,” Remus said without looking up from his assignment. 

“Oh, and do you have a better idea?” 

Remus shut his book and plugged his ink with the stopper. “In fact, I do.” 

Sirius waved an impatient hand at him. “Well, go on then.” 

“Just because outside classes are canceled doesn’t mean we can’t go outside anyway, right?” 

The other three boys grinned and exchanged looks. 

“Snowball fight?” James asked. 

“Snowball fight.” They all replied in unison. 

They hurried up to the dorms to drop off their school bags and change into warmer clothes, then made their way outside into the first snowfall of the season. Visibility was low, but that didn’t matter much to them, especially once they started charming their snowballs to hit their targets. After an hour, the sun began to set—something that happened way too early in the winter for their tastes, especially in the Scottish Highlands. But they were soaked through to the bone, so they figured it was time to head inside, anyway. 

On their way back to Gryffindor Tower, Sirius hooked an arm around Remus’ shoulder and congratulated him on his brilliant idea, suggesting that they make that an annual tradition for the first snowfall of the season. 


	3. Santa Claus

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus tries to explain Santa Claus to the other marauders.

###  **December 5, 1972**

A large barn owl swooped down and dropped the brown package it was carrying on the table, jostling Remus’ morning porridge and making it splatter everywhere. 

“Oh! Bloody—” 

“Here, I’ve got it,” James said, pulling his wand out of his robes and spelling the mess clear. 

“Thanks,” Remus said. He ripped off a corner of toast to feed to the owl in thanks before pushing his porridge out of the way so he could open his package. On top of the candy was a card, which he opened first to read the note. 

> _Annwyl,_
> 
> _Here is your annual peppermint shipment. I included extra this year to share with your roommates, as well as a little surprise._
> 
> _Let us know if you’ll be coming home for the Christmas holiday._
> 
> _Love and miss you,_
> 
> _Mam and Da_

“Is that your mum’s peppermint delivery?” Sirius asked, peering over his shoulder as he pulled the lid off the box. 

“Yup! And it looks like Mam sent enough to share this year.” Remus set the card down to dig through the box of peppermints and candy canes. “It looks like she sent cookies, too.” 

“Your mum is a saint,” James said, plucking a candy cane out of the box and promptly unwrapped it. 

Sirius went to do the same, but stopped when he noticed the card. “What is this?” He asked, holding up the card. 

“It’s a Christmas card?” Remus answered in confusion. 

“I got that part,” Sirius said indignantly. “I mean, who is the fat guy, and why is he on a card?” He pointed to the cartoon Santa Claus drinking hot chocolate on the front. 

Remus gave him a puzzled look. “That’s Santa Claus.” Sirius gave him an equally puzzled look back, so Remus looked at James and Peter, who both shrugged. “None of you? Do pureblood wizards not teach their kids about Santa?” 

The three of them shook their heads. “Who is he?” Peter asked as he leaned forward to grab a candy cane out of the box. 

“Oh, Merlin, where to start…” Remus said, shaking his head. “Well, he’s who delivers presents on Christmas. He lives in the North Pole all year round, and children can write letters to him asking him for presents. But only the good kids get presents—” 

“How does he know if you’re good or not?” James asked at the same time that Sirius asked, “What about the bad kids?” 

“The bad kids get a lump of coal in their stocking—” 

“That’s horrible!” Peter exclaimed. 

“And as for knowing who’s good or bad, he just knows,” Remus said with a shrug. 

“What do you mean he just knows?” Sirius asked. 

“I don’t know. He just does. There’s a whole song. He’s making a list, He’s checking it twice, He’s gonna find out who’s naughty or nice—” 

“Wait, now there’s a list? I thought he just knew—” Peter interrupted. 

“He sees you when you’re sleeping, And he knows when you’re awake—” 

“Oh, Merlin, no. That’s just creepy. Why would muggles tell their children such a creepy story?” Sirius asked in horror. 

“Yeah, I always thought that part was creepy, too,” Remus acknowledged. “Mam and Da always just said that if I misbehaved, they’d tell Santa. I found that a lot less scary.” 

“So, Santa’s basically just a scare tactic to get kids to behave,” Sirius said, staring at the card again. “You’d think he wouldn’t look so… jolly if he’s supposed to scare kids into behaving.” 

“No, he’s not—” Remus sighed. “He’s not supposed to be scary. Kids look forward to Santa visiting every year. He goes around to every kid on Christmas Eve delivering presents, and they leave out cookies and sherry for when he comes down the chimney. It’s a whole thing.” 

“So, he delivers the presents himself? He doesn’t have help?” James asked. 

“No, he does it all himself.” 

“But how does he manage to go around the world in one night?” Peter wondered. 

“Well, if he comes through the chimney, I’m assuming floo powder,” James mused. 

“So, he’s a wizard?” Sirius asked. 

“No, he’s not a wizard, and he doesn’t use the floo network. He has a flying sleigh pulled by reindeer— 

“Flying reindeer?” 

“But how does he make it on time?” 

“There’s no way that he’d be able to fly around the globe all in one night.” 

Remus let out an exasperated sigh. “I don’t know. Santa’s magical. It just happens.” 

“But I thought you said he isn’t a wizard!” Sirius exclaimed. 

He groaned and dropped his head to the table. Who would have thought that explaining Santa to a bunch of people who grew up surrounded by magic would be so hard? 


	4. Wrapping Paper

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The marauders exchange Christmas presents before they leave for the holidays.

###  **December 21, 1972**

Remus dragged himself up the last flight of stairs, leaning heavily on the railing with the arm that wasn't in a sling. The transformation during the super moon the night before had been particularly nasty. Usually, he would have stayed in the hospital wing for longer, but he wanted to take the train home for the holiday with his friends rather than floo back by himself. So, he put on the strongest face he could muster and gritted through his exhaustion to convince Madame Pomfrey that he was good to go grab his trunk. 

He gave the Fat Lady the password and climbed through the open portrait hole into the Gryffindor Common Room, checking his watch. He didn't have much time. It had taken longer to drag himself up the stairs than he'd anticipated, so he'd have to pack and get back downstairs with his trunk fast. With energy he didn't really have, he rushed up the stairs to the boys' dormitory. He opened the door and was instantly greeted by his three roommates. 

"Rem!" Sirius exclaimed. "We were worried you wouldn't make it in time." He went in for a hug but noticed the sling and stopped. "Are you alright?" 

"Dislocated shoulder," Remus explained. "I thought you all would have been downstairs already, waiting for the carriages." 

"We wanted to make sure we were here when you got back," Sirius said, smiling. 

"And see if you needed any help getting your stuff downstairs," James added. 

"We packed for you, too," Peter piped up. 

Remus gave them a tired smile. "Thanks, guys. Really." 

"Of course, Remus," James said, clapping him on his uninjured shoulder. "Now, we've still got a little bit of time, which means we have time for presents—" 

"Presents?" Remus asked. "I thought we were doing presents when we got back from break. I haven't—" He frowned. "I haven't gotten anyone anything yet." 

"That's ok, Remus," Sirius said, gently wrapping an arm around his uninjured shoulder to lead him to his bed, where a stack of poorly wrapped parcels sat at the foot. "We can do our official exchange when we get back, as planned, but—" 

"But this one just arrived, and we don't want to wait to give it to you," Peter finished, his voice squeaking in his evident excitement. 

"Is this from all of you?" Remus asked, sitting on the bed and glancing around at them. 

They all nodded enthusiastically. 

"You lot are terrible at wrapping, you know that?" 

"Well, we did it by hand!" James said in indignation. 

"Yeah, you made fun of us for using a spell last year," Sirius added, also indignant. 

Remus smirked and pulled at the paper that was more loosely draped over whatever the present was rather than actually wrapped around it. "You didn't even use any spellotape." 

"You're supposed to use tape?" Peter asked, and Remus shook his head. 

"Oh, for Merlin's sake, just open the gift," Sirius said. 

Remus laughed and pulled away the rest of the paper to reveal a stack of books. He stared at them, reading some of the titles aloud. "A Guide to Human Transfiguration? Electrical Storms: How to Predict When They'll Occur? 100 Ways to Mask the Taste of Mandrake Leaves? What is all of this?" 

"They're books on animagi," Sirius said. 

"I got that, but I don't understand—you realize that a werewolf can't become an animagus, right?" Remus asked slowly. 

"Right," James said nodding. 

"So, why did you get me a bunch of books on becoming an animagus?" He asked, still not understanding. 

"Well, the books are actually for us," Sirius said vaguely. 

"It's to help you transform," James explained. 

"Because you can't infect animals, right? So, animals can keep you company during the full moons," Sirius added. 

"Guys, I'm tired, and we have to catch the train. Will someone please just get to—" 

"We're going to become animagi!" Peter squeaked. 

Remus stared at them, dumbfounded. "You're _what_?" 


	5. Hot Chocolate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius sneaks Remus some hot chocolate in the hospital wing.

###  **December 12, 1973**

Sirius slowly pushed the door to the hospital wing open, careful not to let it make the loud creaking sound it was always known to cause. It was well past curfew, and he didn't want to wake Madame Pomfrey, who had hearing like that of a bat and sleeping quarters just down the hall where she would hear the screeching of the hinges. Sirius managed to get the door open just enough for him to slip through, then shut the door behind him, making sure to not close the invisibility cloak in it. The hospital wing was blissfully empty, save for the person Sirius was there to visit, but even if it weren't, he wouldn't have to search for where his friend was.

Remus always stayed in the same bed while he was recovering from his transformations. It was the last bed on the left, farthest away from the doors, which made it the quietest, and in front of the window, which had a full view of the waning moon. The first time Sirius had snuck out of bed to visit Remus in the hospital wing after the full moon, he'd asked why he insisted on seeing the moon because usually, the boy wanted to avoid it altogether. But Remus explained that the waning phase was his favorite of the moon cycle; it meant that the wolf was waning, too. It also became Sirius' favorite moon phase after that because it meant his friend was getting stronger and becoming more like the Remus that was his best friend again.

Sirius crept to the back corner of the hospital wing and carefully slipped behind the curtains that blocked Remus' bed from view before slipping the invisibility cloak off. He draped it over the back of the nearby chair and sat down before scooting it as close to Remus' bedside as he could get it.

"Sirius?" He heard Remus whisper.

"Hey, Rem," Sirius whispered back, smiling gently as he watched Remus slowly bat his eyes open.

"I thought that was you sneaking through the door."

"Heard that, huh?"

Remus smiled weakly, but there was also a twinkle of mischief there. "Could also smell you. I still have my super senses as you like to call them."

"Ah, I love your super senses. We wouldn't have found the tunnel to Honeydukes without them," Sirius said with a grin.

"Although, to be fair, Peter smelled the chocolate first," Remus pointed out.

"True, but you found the exact entrance to the passageway."

"That I did." Remus attempted to sit up but winced slightly and lay back down.

Sirius' expression softened. "How are you feeling?"

"Like I've been hit with a stampede of erumpents," he said flatly. "No broken bones this time, though."

"That's better than last month," Sirius said, attempting to be positive.

"I guess. Still feel bloody awful."

Sirius frowned. "Would hot chocolate help?"

"Probably, but where—"

He reached into the pocket of his dressing-gown and pulled out a thermos—Remus' Snoopy thermos, to be specific.

"Did you go through my trunk again?" Remus asked, glaring at him.

Sirius nodded. "I needed a way to transport the cocoa from the kitchens," he explained.

"Wait, you found the kitchens?" Remus sat up in excitement, then sharply inhaled in pain. Sirius leaped to his feet to help him lie back on the pillows in a more upright position, earning a grateful smile. "Thanks, Siri."

"You're welcome, Rem," Sirius said, returning the smile before sitting back down. "But yeah, I found them last night while I—" He glanced at the moon, brighter than usual because of the recent super moon. He sighed and shook his head. "I couldn't sleep, so I wandered around with the cloak and somehow ended up in the dungeons and found the kitchen."

Remus glanced at the moon and bit his lip. "You shouldn't worry about me, not so much that it keeps you up at night. I hate the idea of you losing sleep every moon over me," he mumbled.

"It's not every moon," Sirius protested. "Just the bad ones, like a super moon. Also, you're my best friend, of course, I'm going to worry. I worry, then sneak you hot chocolate in the middle of the night because that's all I can do right now, even though I wish I could do more."

"You don't need to do more," Remus assured him. "I don't even expect you to do anything, really, so just this is perfect."

Sirius smiled and unscrewed the cap to the thermos before handing it to him." Well, I'm glad I came then."


	6. Gingerbread

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The marauders sneak down to the kitchens to make gingerbread houses.

###  **December 18, 1973**

Undercover of James’ invisibility cloak—which they were all _just_ starting to barely be able to fit under at once—Remus, Sirius, James, and Peter all tiptoed down to the kitchens. It wasn’t past their curfew, but according to Sirius, the kitchens were on the way to the dungeons, and they didn’t feel like having a run-in with the Slytherins, so invisibility cloak it was. Sirius led the way since he was the only one of the marauders that knew where the kitchens were, having found them earlier that month. He came to a stop in front of a portrait of a bowl of fruit, causing the other boys to stop as well. 

“Is this it?” Peter asked, his voice a squeaky whisper. 

“Yeah. You just have to tickle the pear,” Sirius whispered back before extending a hand out of the cloak and doing just that. 

The portrait creaked then swung open, allowing the boys to clamor inside. Once the portrait swung closed again, the boys threw off the cloak and were instantly greeted by at least three house-elves asking if they wanted anything to eat. Sirius looked at Remus, who seemed to be slightly overwhelmed at the sudden attention and thus forgot why they’d come downstairs in the first place. 

“Remus?” Sirius prompted. 

Remus shook his head to clear it and smiled down at the nearest house-elf. “We were wondering if we could make some gingerbread houses,” he said gently. 

“Oh, of course, sir!” The house-elf squeaked. “Jingle would be happy to make a gingerbread house for you, sirs!” 

“Oh! I—” Remus blushed. “I meant that we’d like to make it ourselves. Although, it suddenly occurs to me that I have no idea how to make gingerbread.” 

Jingle nodded enthusiastically. “We can make it, sir! And you can decorate it. Would you like some hot chocolate while you wait?” 

“Oh, if it wouldn’t be any trouble—” 

Remus barely got the words out before the four of them were whisked away to a table, and four mugs of steaming hot chocolate with peppermint sticks were out in front of them. 

“Was it like this when you found it?” Remus whispered, gesturing around to the house-elves, continually offering the marauders food and drink. 

“Pretty much,” Sirius whispered back. “I don’t think they get visitors often.” 

“That must be lonely,” Remus mused before taking a ginger sip from his mug. 

Sirius frowned. He hadn’t thought about it before, but it probably was lonely. The house-elves were never really seen by the students. Half of the students most likely didn’t even know that the castle had house-elves. 

Not long after they arrived, a giant, gingerbread house shaped like Hogwarts castle was plopped on the table in front of them, along with dozens of bowls of candies and several piping bags of icing. 

“Oh Godric, well, that’s not daunting at all,” Sirius muttered under his breath. When Remus had said that he wanted to decorate gingerbread houses, he’d thought it wouldn’t be that big of a deal. They were just going to end up eating it anyway, so it didn’t need to look nice. But there was no way the four of them would be able to consume this whole castle themselves. 

“It’s certainly bigger than any gingerbread house I’ve ever decorated,” Remus acknowledged. 

“Same,” James and Peter said in unison. 

“So, I’m guessing I’m the only one who’s never decorated a gingerbread house,” Sirius said with a sigh. 

“Yeah, but you’ve eaten plenty of them at Mum and Dad’s,” James teased, elbowing him in the ribs. 

“Besides, we’re wizards. If we bugger it up, we can always fix it,” Remus pointed out. 

James gasped dramatically. “Remus! Are you suggesting we sully one of your good old fashioned muggle Christmas traditions with magic?” 

Remus smirked. “Don’t tell my Mam.” 

Sirius grinned. “I won’t if you don’t tell mine that I’m decorating a gingerbread castle in the Hogwarts kitchens.” 

“So, how are we doing this?” James asked, picking up a piping bag. 

“Divvy it up by section?” Peter suggested. 

“Shall we make this interesting?” Sirius asked. 

“Only you would try to turn something like decorating a gingerbread house into a competition.” Remus rolled his eyes, but then he flashed a mischievous smile. “May the best decorator win.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> They all claimed that they won, but Jingle and the rest of the house-elves all refused to judge, so there wass no official winner. Really it was Peter, though. Remus ate too many of his own decorations, and James and Sirius got more icing on each other than they did the castle.


	7. Sparkle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus enlists the marauders’ help making Christmas ornaments.

###  **December 7, 1974**

Remus and Peter were on the floor in the middle of the boys’ dormitory, unpacking the box of crafting supplies when Sirius and James came through the door after their evening quidditch practice. 

“Oh, what’s this, lads?” Jams asked as he dropped his kit on his bed. 

Sirius dropped his kit on his own bed and then bent down to pick up a tub of red glitter. “Are we planning a prank? Glitter bombs, perhaps?” 

“No, not a prank,” Remus said. 

“We’re making Christmas ornaments!” Peter exclaimed. “Mrs. Lupin sent us a whole box of paints and stuff.” 

“We’re what?” James asked. 

“Is this another one of your Lupin family Christmas things?” Sirius asked as he sat on the floor next to Remus. His tone was teasing, but there was a hint of joy in his eyes that betrayed his excitement at the prospect of participating in another Christmas tradition he’d missed out on as a child. 

Remus nodded. “Every year, Mam and I would make new ornaments to add to the ones already on the Christmas tree. Da tried one year, but his ornament ended up looking a little dreadful, so he left it to Mam and me, instead.” 

“Oh, I love that! My mum and I would usually go out and buy a new ornament every year, but making them sounds more fun,” James said, dropping to the floor next to Peter. 

Remus pulled out a box of salt dough ornaments that his mother made to send along with the craft supplies. “Mam already made the ornaments, so all we have to do is decorate them. We have paint and glitter. Of course, we could probably charm some of them, too, which I never did with Mam for obvious reasons, but I kinda prefer the muggle way anyway.” 

James and Peter pulled out a few circular ornaments without further prompting and began decorating them. Remus selected a Christmas tree-shaped one, reached for the green paint, and added a base coat to his tree. 

When he noticed that Sirius still hadn’t moved, he set his paintbrush down and lowered his voice to a whisper. “What’s wrong?” 

“I’ve never decorated an ornament before. I don’t want to do it wrong,” Sirius whispered back, biting his lip. 

“There’s no right or wrong way to decorate a Christmas ornament,” Remus assured him. 

“What if I’m rubbish at it like your dad, though?” 

“Then we hang it on the back of the tree, as we do with Da’s.” Remus nudged him playfully. “The point is to have fun. But, if you want a simple place to start—” he sifted through the box to find a candy cane-shaped ornament—“You know what these are supposed to look like.” 

Sirius grinned at him as he took the ornament from Remus’ outstretched hand. “Thanks, Re.” 

“You’re welcome, Sirius,” Remus said, grinning back. 

“Pass me the red paint?” 

Hours went by as the boys laughed and progressively became more and more covered in paint and glitter as they worked. Thankfully, they were quickly able to clean up most of their mess with a quick wave of their wand. Still, not even the strongest scourgify could get rid of every bit of the glitter that had somehow gotten everywhere in the dormitory, despite how careful they’d been. Although Remus didn’t quite mind, because every time he found a bit of glitter in his sock drawer or stuck between the pages of his textbook, he was reminded of the proud sparkle in Sirius’ eye when he finished painting his first candy cane ornament. 


	8. Pine Tree

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus wakes Sirius up early to go help Hagrid find trees for the Gryffindor common room and the rest of the castle.

###  **December 8, 1974**

Remus woke up with the sun that Saturday morning. He wasn't usually an early riser, especially when he and the other marauders had stayed up as late as they had the night before, but that morning he had something to look forward to. That morning, he would be taking Sirius to look for Christmas trees with Hagrid; because what was the point of making ornaments if they didn't have a tree to put them on? 

He dressed quickly, bundling up in his warmest jumper and socks, before tiptoeing over to Sirius' bed and poking his head through the bed curtains. 

Sirius was still fast asleep. His long black curls stuck out at various angles, fanning around his head on the pillow to almost look like a halo, and he had a second pillow clutched to his chest that covered half of his face. Remus almost didn't want to disturb him because, for once, he was quiet and looked more peaceful than Remus had ever seen him before, but they had to meet Hagrid soon. 

Remus pulled the curtains back and sat carefully on the edge of the bed to shake Sirius awake. "Pads. Pads, wake up," he whispered. 

Sirius slowly bat his eyes open and stared up at him. "Rem? What's up? Why are you dressed? What time is it?" 

"Just after 7:30. Come on, get dressed. I've got a surprise for you." 

"Does that surprise have to be so bloody early? I'm tired," Sirius complained. 

"Yes, it does. Now, here." Remus bent down, picked up a pair of jeans from the floor, and threw them at him. "Put these on. We have to be downstairs in twenty minutes.” 

Sirius grumbled, but he got up and quickly dressed, putting on the pair of jeans Remus had thrown at him and his Quidditch jumper. "Are the others not joining for whatever you have planned?" He asked as he threw his hair into a messy bun at the nape of his neck. 

Truth be told, Remus hadn't asked them. It wasn't that he didn't want them there; it was just that he hadn't even thought to ask James or Peter if they wanted to join. Remus shuffled his feet. "I thought it could just be us." 

Sirius smiled. "That's good with me. Shall we go then?" 

"You'll need your coat," Remus said, grabbing his from the coat rack by the door. 

"Ooo. What do you have planned, my dear Remus?" Sirius teased as he grabbed his coat. 

"You'll see." 

They made their way down the stairs, out of the castle, and down the hill to Hagrid's hut, where Hagrid was already waiting outside. 

"Ah, there yeh are!" Hagrid said jovially. "Just the two of yeh today?" 

The boys nodded, then Sirius looked at Remus. "Will you tell me what it is we're doing _now_?" 

"Yeh haven't told him?" 

"I wanted it to be a surprise," Remus admitted. 

"Ah," Hagrid said, giving him a fond and somewhat knowing smile, although Remus wasn't sure what Hagrid thought he knew. "Well, Remus here asked if he could be the one to pick out the Christmas tree for the Gryffindor common room." 

Sirius' face lit up. "Is that why you had us make all those ornaments last night?" 

"The tree was always a two-part thing: making ornaments with Mam and chopping down the tree with Da," Remus explained. 

"Well, let's go then!" 

Hagrid laughed at his excitement and handed them a large orange ribbon. "I'll let you two go pick out a tree while I start choppin' down the ones for the rest o' the castle. Just mark the one you want with that there ribbon, and I'll chop it down and bring it up for yeh." 

Sirius beamed. "Thanks, Hagrid!" 

They set off for the forest, strolling along as they inspected trees, looking for a suitable one for the common room. 

"You know, it occurs to me that I have no idea what I'm looking for in a tree," Sirius said after about fifteen minutes of walking. "Like, what makes the perfect tree?" 

"It depends on who you ask. Mam always liked the shorter ones because she didn't have to get the step ladder out to decorate it—" 

"Like that one?" Sirius pointed at a fat, stubby tree. 

"Yeah, and Da always liked the perfectly symmetrical ones, but I find those a bit boring." 

"Well, what about you? What does your perfect tree look like?" 

"It has to have character. Maybe one that's really skinny or one that's a little crooked." He shrugged. "I kind of just wait 'til one speaks to me, to be honest." 

"What are you, a fairy?" Sirius joked. 

Remus went to smack him on the arm, but when he turned, Sirius was no longer beside him. He heard a shout behind him and turned. 

"I think I found it!" Sirius exclaimed, grabbing his gloved hand to pull him off the path. 

Remus ran to keep up, then Sirius stopped suddenly, causing Remus to bump into him. "Oof," he grunted. 

"Well?" 

Remus looked up at the tree. It was a few inches taller than Sirius was, which meant it was probably around six and a half feet tall, and fast, with long pine needles and a few pinecones scattered on its branches. It leaned a little to the left, but that could be fixed when it was chopped down. 

He looked from the tree to Sirius, who was watching him with careful anticipation. "It's perfect." 


	9. Chilly

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s the coldest night of the year, and since Sirius’ bed is next to the not very well insulated window, he climbs into Remus’ bed.

###  **December 19, 1974**

It was the coldest night of the year in Gryffindor Tower, and it made Sirius curse his decision to take the bed by the window that year. Remus had claimed the bed by the window in the past, but sometime in the winter of their third year, Sirius noticed how often Remus would go to bed in layers of thick socks and woolens jumpers. The boy had been suffering for three years without saying anything, and Sirius ran a little warm at night anyway, so they switched. And it was great…up until that night, that is. 

The window was draftier due to a Filibuster Firework gone haywire and a reparo that didn’t quite do the job—but they weren’t going to go to a prefect to get it fixed and risk getting in trouble. Sirius had been keeping warm using heating charms cast over his bed, but even those weren’t holding in the bitter temperature leaking through the gap between the windowpane and the stone wall. 

Sirius pulled the blankets higher and curled into a ball, but there was no use. There was no way he’d be able to fall asleep shivering the way he was. With a sigh, he flung his bed curtains open, slipped out from underneath the covers, and quickly padded across the room to his old bed—now Remus’ bed. He was too cold to bother “knocking” and instead peeled the curtains back enough for him to slip inside and under the covers with Remus. 

Remus immediately stirred. “Sirius? What are you doing?” He asked sleepily. 

“I’m bloody freezing. The windows drafty because we didn’t fix it properly, and my heating charms aren’t holding,” Sirius answered through chattering teeth. 

“So you’re commandeering my bed?” Remus asked, sounding more awake. 

“James’ bed is lumpy, and Peter kicks,” Sirius said by way of explanation as he climbed under the covers. 

Remus let out a little shriek as he pressed his cold feet against his leg. “Merlin, Sirius!” 

“I told you, I’m bloody freezing,” he said, burrowing under the covers. 

“We really should just talk to one of the prefects about getting the window fixed. You could get sick.” 

“Yeah, we probably should,” Sirius acknowledged. “But for now, can you just help me bring feeling back into my limbs?” 

Remus sighed and reached through the bed curtains for his wand, then waved it over Sirius, muttering a heating charm. Sirius felt an instant wave of warmth pass over him, sending a pleasant shiver down his spine and making his muscles relax. “Thanks, Re,” he mumbled contently as Remus slid back under the covers. 

“You’re welcome,” he whispered into the little bit of space between them as they lay there, facing each other. 

“You know, I don’t remember it being as cozy,” Sirius said after a while. 

“It’s probably because it’s not next to a broken window,” Remus said matter-of-factly. 

“No. I slept in this bed for three years. Somehow you’ve made it cozier.” He closed his eyes and burrowed further into the bed, causing his feet to brush against Remus’ under the covers. “It’s your Remus magic.” 

“My what?” 

“Remus magic. You somehow make everything around you feel warm and safe,” Sirius murmured into the pillow. Now that he was no longer chilled to the bone, sleep was approaching fast. 

Remus hummed. “You’re clearly exhausted because that makes no sense.” 

“I am tired, but that doesn’t mean it’s not true.” Sirius shifted to get more comfortable, letting his feet tangle with Remus’. 

“Sure,” Remus said, clearly unconvinced. 

Sirius opened one eye and flashed a sleepy smile. “Goodnight Re.” 

Remus smiled back and closed his eyes. “Goodnight, Sirius.” 


	10. Reindeer Games

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The marauders show Remus their animagus forms for the first time.

###  **December 17, 1975**

Ever since the marauders found about Remus’ “furry little problem,” they wanted to figure out a way to help him. There wasn’t a cure (and you better believe they tried to find one), but they could make the transformations a little less lonely and hopefully less taxing on him because of that. It took three years, but they finally figured out how to do it. During the time between the August and September full moons, they held the mandrake leaves in their mouths. They brewed the potions and hid them. They said the incantations every night. Then, finally, an electrical storm came the night before, just in time for the December full moon, which was the next day. And they managed it. Now, they were animagi, and it was time to show Remus. 

“Are you ready, lads?” James whispered. 

Sirius huddled with James and Peter by the door to their dorm, where they knew Remus was inside resting in preparation for his body to rearrange like it did every month. 

Sirius and Peter nodded, and they all burst through the door, too excited to be quiet. 

Remus instantly cringed at the loud bang. “Guys, volume,” he groaned, pulling the covers up higher over his shoulders. 

“Sorry, Remus,” Sirius said as sheepishly as he could despite his grin. “We’re just excited.” 

“Should we say it, or just do it?” James asked. 

Sirius cocked his head as if that was a dumb question. “Just do it, obviously.” 

Remus groaned again and sat up. “Oh Merlin, what did you three do? Keep in mind that I’m a Prefect now when you answer that.” 

“Oh, you’re definitely going to want to know this,” Peter squeaked, unable to contain his excitement either. 

“Alright, out with it then.” 

The three boys exchanged a look, then shifted into their animal forms—Sirius, a big, black, shaggy dog, James, a stag that took up a majority of the room with his massive antlers, and Peter, a small rat, which was good because another large animal would not have fit in their dorm room. 

The dog bounded over to Remus’ bed and hopped up, his tail wagging and his tongue sticking out, panting in excitement. The dog nudged Remus’ hand with his snout, eliciting a small laugh as Remus started to scratch his ears, which the dog quite liked, actually. Carefully, the stag bent down to let the rat hang from his antlers so they could make their way over to the bed, too. Remus looked around at the three of them, speechless. 

Sirius was still getting used to observing the world around him in his animagus form. His sense of smell was more powerful, as well as his hearing. Things weren’t in as many colors as he was used to, and pictures were slightly fuzzier, but even despite that, he could see the tears welling up in his friend’s eyes. He quickly hopped off the bed and shifted back into his human form, followed by James and Peter, and sat on the edge of the bed. 

“Remus, what’s wrong?” James asked. 

“You actually did it,” Remus whispered. 

“Well, yeah, you helped us,” Peter reminded him. “We couldn’t have done it without you, really.” 

“It was one thing when it was just a theory, but I didn’t—you actually did it. It was so dangerous, but you did this for me. I—” he choked on a sob. 

“Well, yeah, Re,” Sirius said softly, reaching out to touch his forearm. “You’re our best friend. We wanted to help.” 

Remus let out a wet laugh and surged forward, wrapping his arms tightly around Sirius’ neck and burying his face in his hair. 

Sirius gasped slightly in surprise. He wasn’t used to Remus initiating such fierce hugs—that was usually Sirius or James—not that he minded, though. With a soft laugh, he wrapped his arms around Remus’ waist and held him close. James and Peter shortly joined in, bracing their hug from either side. 

They stayed like that for a few long moments until James piped up, “We’re going to need nicknames. Something to call our alter-egos.” 

“Obviously, we should call James ‘Rudolph’ now that he can join in all the reindeer games,” Sirius joked, and he felt Remus laugh against his neck. 

James broke the hug to pull back in outrage. “I’m a deer, not a reindeer!” 

“Also, wasn’t it that Rudolph wasn’t able to join in the reindeer games?” Peter asked. 

Sirius knew that, but he didn’t mind being wrong if it made Remus laugh. 

“Yeah, that’s right, Pete,” Remus said with another laugh before finally pulling away from the hug. He stayed close to Sirius, though, resting his head on his shoulder seemingly out of exhaustion, and Sirius definitely didn’t mind that either. 


	11. Menorah Candles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> While Sirius is spending the holidays at the Lupin’s, a power outage provides the perfect time for Sirius to learn about Hanukkah.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not Jewish, however I did quite a bit of research to make sure I got the details as accurate as possible. I based Hope’s experiences with Hanukkah a little off of my college roommate, who was half-Jewish and half-Catholic.  
> Also, this is not so vaguely inspired by that Friends episode, “The One with the Blackout.”

###  **December 22, 1975**

Remus didn't usually have his friends stay with him for the holidays. He either spent them alone with his parents or, in most cases, he went to the Potters since their house was massive—more of a mansion than a house, really. But the Christmas holidays of his fifth year were different. That year, Sirius would be coming home with him. 

Like Remus, Sirius often spent his holidays at the Potters, although he did it mostly to avoid seeing his family. However, that year James and the Potters were heading to France to visit some distant relatives, and while they had invited Sirius to go along, he hadn't wanted to intrude. He also hadn't wanted to intrude on Remus' holiday, but Remus assured him he wouldn't be and practically had to pack for him so he wouldn't just stay at Hogwarts by himself. 

After getting settled in Remus' bedroom, where a cot was already set up for Sirius, they sat on the couch. "I told you that you wouldn't be intruding," Remus whispered. "Mam loves you already." 

"How can you tell?" Sirius whispered, glancing at the kitchen where Hope busied herself making hot chocolate. 

"She was happier to see you than she was me, and I'm her only child. Just trust me. She's happy you're here." He nudged at Sirius' leg, which was bouncing restlessly. "Now, will you stop it and relax?" 

Sirius gave him a sheepish grin. "Fine, fine, sorry." 

Hope exited the kitchen at that precise moment, carrying a tray with three mugs and a teapot shaped like a gingerbread house, presumably filled with hot chocolate. "Annwyl, would you grab the cookies? They wouldn't fit on the tray." 

"I can—" Sirius started to say, but Remus hopped up off the couch and pressed a hand into Sirius' shoulder to stop him from getting up. 

"Sure, Mam!" 

Hope sat the tray down and started pouring mugs of the warm brown liquid. "Sirius, peppermint or no peppermint?" 

"Peppermint, please. Thank you, Mrs. Lupin." 

She waved a hand as she passed him a mug. "Please, there's no need for all that 'Mrs. Lupin' nonsense. Mrs. Lupin is—" 

"Her mother-in-law," Remus finished with a smirk as he came back in the room, carrying a plate of expertly decorated sugar cookies. 

Hope gave him a playful swat before handing him a mug. "Hope is fine, dear," she said, turning her attention back to Sirius. 

Sirius smiled and took a sip of his hot chocolate. "Merlin, that's good." 

"Told you Mam's is better than Hogwarts'," Remus said smugly. 

"You did," he conceded. 

"So, shall we see what's on the telly?" Hope suggested. 

Sirius' eyes lit up, and he looked at Remus, practically vibrating with excitement. 

"What have I said?" 

"Sirius has never watched telly before," Remus explained. 

"Of course!" She exclaimed. "Well, what should we show him then?" 

"I'll see if any of those American Christmas specials are on." Remus set his mug down and moved in front of the television set. The moment he flicked the knob that turned the set on, though, all of the lights flicked off, leaving them in near darkness. "Bugger," he muttered under his breath. 

"That must be the breaker," Hope said with a sigh. 

"What's a breaker?" Sirius asked. 

"It's what controls the electricity," Remus explained quickly before looking at his mother. "Do you want me to go and take a look to see if I can fix it?" 

"Oh, I wouldn't bother. Everything in this house runs on a combination of muggle and magic that only your father understands," she said with an air of fond annoyance. "And since you both aren't allowed to do any magic while you're not at Hogwarts, we'll just have to go medieval. Can you boys light the fire while I find candles?" 

"Sure, Mam." Remus waited for Hope to leave before looking at Sirius with a smirk that Sirius would recognize even in pitch blackness. "So, have you ever started a fire without magic?" 

"Intentionally?" 

Remus laughed, and together they worked on lighting the fire the muggle way, finally managing it when Hope came back minutes later, a candelabra in one hand and a box of matches in the other hand. 

"Oh, good, you boys got it," she said. 

"Mam, is that a menorah?" Remus asked, staring at the nine-branched candelabra now sitting on the coffee table next to their momentarily forgotten hot chocolates. 

"Your grandmother was cleaning out the house and thought I might like to have it." 

"Menorah?" Sirius asked. 

"It's kind of a symbol of Hanukkah, I guess?" Remus looked at his mother for help. "I don't remember a whole lot, honestly." 

"Well, that's because we've always done Christmas with you. Frankly, I haven't celebrated Hanukkah, but the menorah was my grandmother's before it was my mams, so it's nice to have something remember her by," Hope said before striking a match. 

"And what is Hanukkah?" Sirius asked, intently watching as Hope took the match to the middle candle, lit it, and blew the match out. 

"It's a celebration of the Maccabees' successful rebellion against the Greeks. The Greeks had. Taken over the Jewish temples and made Judaism a punishable offense, but then the Maccabees rebelled and reclaimed their temples," Hope explained as she lit each of the remaining eight candles from left to right using the center candle. "As they were ridding the temple of all Greek influences, they lit the eternal light, something every temple has to symbolize God's eternal presence. However, there was only enough oil to last one night. But the legend is that one night's worth of oil lasted the eight days it took for someone to come back with a new supply of oil." 

"So is the menorah to represent that? Eight candles for the eight days?" 

"That's right, dear." 

"It's sort of magical, isn't it?" Sirius said, looking at the menorah with awe. 

Hope smiled and stared at the menorah for a moment, almost contemplatively. "Yeah, there is a sort of magic to it. What are miracles if not God's magic?" 

"It's like they were being watched over. And they took back what was rightfully theirs. I like it. It's… comforting but also inspiring." 

Remus looked at Sirius with puzzled awe, which was met by a soft smile and a tilt of the head in question. 

"What?" Sirius mouthed. 

Remus shook his head and smiled back. "Nothing," he mouthed, before picking up his partially cold cocoa and taking a sip, thankful to be spending the holidays at home, power outage or not. 


	12. Dreidel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius joins in on Lupin Family Game night.

###  **December 23, 1975**

“Alright, the breaker should hold for a while, now,” Lyall said, coming back into the kitchen where Sirius, Remus, and Hope were seated around the table. “Sorry that you had to go the evening without power, dear.” He bent and pressed a kiss to his wife’s cheek. 

“It’s alright, cariad,” Hope said. She pressed a kiss of her own to his cheek before smiling at Sirius and Remus. “We had a lovely evening, even without electricity.” 

Sirius smiled back. He liked being at the Lupin’s house. They were a lot like the Potters, but simpler. Don’t get him wrong, he loved visiting the Potters, but there was so much about being at the Potter’s house that was like being at his own home. But at the Lupin’s, nothing was the same. It was nice. 

“I’m sure these boys are well accustomed to life without electricity, anyway, huh?” Lyall asked, shooting them a conspiratorial grin. “What did you all get up to last night? Did I miss out on any time-honored traditions of ours?” 

“Actually, we channeled some of my older traditions,” Hope said. 

“Oh?” 

“Mrs. L—Hope told us the story of Hanukkah,” Sirius supplied. 

“Mam brought out the Menorah to give us some light,” Remus added in explanation. 

“It’s been a long time since we did anything to celebrate Hanukkah,” Lyall mused. 

“What other ways are there to celebrate it?” Sirius asked. 

“Hmm, let’s see,” Hope began, “there was always a lot of fried food involved, we exchanged presents, played dreidels—” 

“What are dreidels?” 

“It’s a game played with a spinning top. Everyone has pieces that you play with—we usually played with candy. It was always a lot of fun. I think my mam gave me a set when she gave me the menorah, now that I think about it.” 

“It has been a long time since we’ve had a good old-fashioned Lupin Family Game Night,” Lyall pointed out. 

“I’d love to learn to play,” Sirius said earnestly. 

Hope smiled. “I’ll go see if I can find them.” 

“And I’ll find something that we can use as game pieces,” Lyall said. 

Fifteen minutes later, the three Lupins and Sirius were set up around the kitchen table with a pile of Bertie Bott’s Every Flavor Beans, ready for Hope to explain the rules. 

“Alright, so the rules are simple. Everyone puts in one game piece to start the ’pot,’ then on your turn, you spin the dreidel and, depending on which side is facing up when it stops, you either do nothing, get everything in the pot, get half of the pieces in the pot, or have to add a piece to the pot,” she said, setting the blue, ornately carved wooden dreidel in the center of the table. 

“Which side means which one?” Remus asked, staring at the letters on the dreidel. 

Sirius stared at them, too, unable to decipher what they could mean. 

“Oh, dear,” Hope said, frowning. I always had a hard time remembering my Hebrew alphabet. I wonder if mam included—ah-ha!” She triumphantly pulled a slip of paper out of the box. “A cheat sheet. Annwyl, would you get the notepad from the kitchen so we can make a few copies of this?” 

Remus nodded and quickly retrieved the notepad and a pen—which seemed much more practical than a quill, to be honest—and once Remus copied the cheat sheet three more times, they were able to start playing. 

Lyall seemed to have the worst luck when it came to spinning the dreidel—he never won the pot and was stuck wither doing nothing or adding pieces on his turns—so he got out first. He was shortly followed by Hope, who won the first pot but had equally bad luck after that. Which left Remus and Sirius to battle it out. The game stretched on for a while until Remus and Sirius each only had one piece left in their possession. Remus sucked in a deep breath and spun the dreidel, staring intently at it as it slowly came to a stop and landed on its side, _shin_ side up. 

Sirius let out a triumphant shout as Remus grumbled and put his last Bertie Bott’s bean in the pot. 

“Well played, lad,” Lyall said, clapping Sirius on the shoulder. 

He grinned and looked from Lyall to Remus, who sent him a soft smile in return. 

“Now, who wants tea?” Lyall asked, standing up. 

“Tea or hot chocolate?” Hope countered. 

“Oh, hot chocolate, definitely. See, this is why I married you. You have the best ideas,” Lyall said, smiling playfully. 

As Hope and Lyall got up to start the hot chocolate, Sirius pulled the pile of Bertie Bott’s beans toward him and started sifting through them to find his favorite flavors, then paused. With a soft smile, he split the pile in two and pushed one half toward Remus. 


	13. Snow Shovel

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When a huge snowstorm blows through Wales, Sirius learns how to shovel the walkway the muggle way.

###  **December 3, 1975**

“Oh dear, it’s really coming down out there,” Hope mused, staring out the big bay window at the front of the Lupin home. Sirius and Remus got off the couch, where they were curled up under blankets with mugs of hot chocolate. 

“Blimey, yeah, it is,” Sirius said, staring out at the front yard. The pink sky was only partially visible due to the fat flakes falling from the sky almost sideways because of the wind. 

“Annwyl, would you mind taking care of the walkway before it gets too much worse?” 

Remus sighed and stared forlornly at his former spot on the couch but nodded. “Sure, Mam. Come on, Sirius. You can borrow Da’s snow boots and coat.” 

“What’s happening?” Sirius asked, tilting his head as he followed Remus to the mudroom off the back of the house. 

“We’re shoveling the walkway,” Remus explained. He tossed Sirius a big, puffy parka before starting to put on his own. 

“Wait, is that what your mum meant by taking care of the walk? But it’s cold,” Sirius protested, but he started to slip on the parka anyway. Thankfully, Lyall was a few inches taller than Remus, so the coat wasn’t nearly as small on Sirius as it would have been if the coat was Remus’. “Why shovel it when you could just magic it clear?” 

“Well, we’re still underage, so we can’ magic the walk clear.” 

“Right, but your dad could, couldn’t he?” 

“It’s a muggle neighborhood, Pads. I’m fairly certain Mrs. Henderson next-door would think she was having some sort of episode if she saw Da waving a stick around making snow disappear,” Remus said, his smirk evident in his voice despite Sirius not being able to see it. 

“Oh, right,” Sirius mumbled, feeling slightly dumb. 

Remus straightened from putting his boots on and frowned slightly. “You don’t have to help. You are a guest, after all. I just thought it would be more fun with both of us doing it.” 

“No, I’ll help. I want to help. It’s the least I can do, seeing how nice your mum and dad have been. Besides, I could probably do with some exercise with all your mum’s cookies I’ve been eating.” 

“Like you could ever be anything but fit.” Remus laughed and pulled on a woolen hat that had a pom-pom on the top that was kind of adorable on him. “Da’s boots are there,” he said, pointing. 

Sirius slipped on the boots and bundled up in hat and gloves, then they grabbed the shovels leaning by the door and went out the back door, trudging through the snow to get to the front walkway. 

“Merlin’s balls, it’s cold out here,” Sirius said through chattering teeth. He glanced at Remus, who was shivering, too, but would never complain about it. 

“You’ll warm up once we start shoveling,” Remus said. Then he stabbed the shovel into the growing snow pile in front of the front door and got to work. 

They shoveled in silence for a while, and Sirius found that Remus was right. He did start to warm up from the exertion of shoveling what must have been several feet of snow that accumulated in the short time it had been snowing. After he didn’t know how long, he stopped and leaned against the handle of the shovel to catch his breath. 

Remus stopped and leaned against his shovel, too. “Wow, that went a lot quicker with both of us,” he said, taking in the work they’d done. Since it was still actively snowing, the walkway wasn’t completely clear, but it was better than it was before, which was something at least. “And it was nicer having company out here, too.” 

“I’m glad I could help,” Sirius said, giving him a soft and slightly exhausted smile. 

Remus smiled back. “I’m happy you came to spend the holidays with me, Pads—well, with us.” 

“Me, too. It’s been nice being just the two of us,” Sirius murmured, then hastily added, “Not that I don’t love when it’s all four of us. It’s just…” 

“Quieter?” Remus offered with a laugh. 

“Yeah, maybe that’s it. Prongs can be quite loud.” Sirius chuckled and pulled off his glove to tuck some loose hairs behind his ear. “I don’t know, it’s just been a peaceful holiday. I like…I like being here.” 

“Well, you’re welcome back anytime. Mam would love that. I would, too.” 

Sirius opened his mouth to reply, but Hope stuck her head out the door and called for them to warm up and have some more hot chocolate before he got the chance. 


	14. Elves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The marauders pull a festive prank on the professors.

###  **December 10, 1976**

“So, Moony, explain to me again why we’re dressed up as festive house-elves,” Sirius said as he adjusted the red and green felt hat with pointed ears sewn onto the sides. 

“You’re not dressed as house-elves,” Remus corrected. “You’re dressed as Santa’s elves.” 

“Ok, then can you explain why we’re dressed as Santa’s elves—hang on, Santa has elves?” Sirius stopped dead in his tracks, making the jingling of the bells on his shoes stop. 

“Yes, they’re the ones that make the toys,” Remus said in exasperation. “I thought I explained this years ago when I explained Santa.” 

“I don’t remember you saying anything about elves,” Sirius insisted. “So let me get this straight: Santa is this all-powerful wizard who can manage to deliver toys to every child, muggle and wizard, in one night, but he needs house-elves to make the toys for him? Can’t he just conjure the toys when he gets to the child’s house?” 

“Also, if we’re delivering cards to the professors, shouldn’t we be dressed as Santa, not his elves?” James piped up. 

“Because Prongs, if we were Santa, Moony couldn’t be ogling my arse in these tights,” he retorted, waggling his eyebrows at Remus. 

Remus spluttered and flushed pink. “I—I wasn’t—” 

“Oi, leave Moony alone,” James said, smacking Sirius on the arm. “Not everyone is as obsessed with your arse as you are.” 

“Relax, Prongs. He knew I was joking.” Sirius’ eyes softened as he looked at Remus, but the casual grin stayed. “Right, Moons?” 

“Yeah. Right,” Remus said quickly. They locked eyes for a quick moment, then broke the gaze to search in his bag. “Alright, so the envelopes are addressed to each of the professors. Prongs, you take half, Pads, you take the other.” He handed them each a stack of what looked like ordinary green envelopes. They weren’t ordinary, though. These envelopes contained holiday cards that were charmed to act like howlers, all set to go off simultaneously so that “God Rest Ye Merry Hippogriffs” would play throughout every classroom in the building. 

“Oh! Wait, Prongs, give me your half. I want Minnie to see me in my hat,” Sirius said. 

“Make sure you get them all delivered before noon because that’s when—” 

“They’re set to go off. We know, Moony,” James finished for him. “Alright, I’m off! Wish me luck.” He gave them a salute then walked off. 

“Alright, I’m going to class because I can’t afford to skive off from Ancient Runes again this week,” Remus said, hiking his bag higher onto his shoulder. 

“Re,” Sirius started, almost in warning, “I don’t think it can be considered skiving off if you were busy recovering from howling at a moon all night.” 

“Yeah, yeah, I know,” Remus dismissed. 

“Do you?” Sirius asked softly. 

He let out a sigh. “Yeah, I do. Still, I can’t be late. And neither can you, so go.” 

“I’m going, I’m going.” Sirius grinned. 

They both turned to leave, but then Sirius stopped and tossed a look over his shoulder. “Hey, Moons?” 

Remus turned back around to see Sirius grin at him and shake his arse a bit, which made the bells on his costume jingle loudly, before running off down the hall. Remus choked out a laugh and turned to continue his walk to class, a bright red blush gracing his cheeks the entire way there. 


	15. Sweater

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius gets a homemade gift from Mrs. Lupin.

###  **December 18, 1976**

Remus climbed the stairs to Gryffindor tower, followed closely behind by Sirius, who was quietly humming God Rest Ye Merry Hippogriffs as they went. 

“Will you stop with that song already?” Remus asked in exasperation. 

“I’m sorry!” Sirius exclaimed, which finally stopped the humming. “I’ve had it stuck in my head ever since the howlers. Which, by the way, I’m still surprised we didn’t get detentions for.” 

“I think the professors were all too impressed by the coordination to give out detention. Professor Babbling actually giggled when it went off during Ancient Runes. She was humming for the rest of the period,” Remus said, chuckling. He gave the password to the Fat Lady and climbed through the portrait hole. 

“See? It’s a catchy song. It’s not just me.” 

“Yes, it’s catchy, but you’ve been humming it for a week,” Remus whined. “Can you at least pick a different song?” 

“As you wish, dear Moony,” Sirius said, grinning mischievously, and he started humming Jingle Bell Rock as they climbed the stairs to the boys’ dormitories. 

Remus groaned and pushed the door open. “Ugh, I think that one is worse.” 

Sirius laughed and nudged his shoulder. “Well, you have to pick one, Moons—hey, what’s your parent’s owl doing here?” 

Sitting on Remus’ nightstand was the Lupin’s large brown barn owl, Hamlet. He hooted and fluttered his wings. 

“I’m not sure,” Remus said, dropping his school bag on the foot of his bed before reaching out to pat Hamlet on the head. “Did Mam and Da send me something?” He asked the owl, who just hooted in response. 

Sirius dropped his bag on the ground and picked up a package that was resting on his bed. “Here, he must have been delivering this.” 

“What is it?” Remus asked. 

“No idea. But it has my name on the front, not yours,” Sirius said, staring at it in bewilderment. 

“Well, open it then,” Remus said, sitting on the edge of the bed. 

Hesitating slightly, he pulled at the string on the package and pulled the paper away, revealing a maroon knitted jumper and a Santa Claus card on top. Sirius furrowed his brow and picked up the card to read the note. 

> _Happy Christmas, fy machgen._
> 
> _Remus said you were going home for the holidays, so I wanted to send your present early to make sure you got it on time._
> 
> _You’re welcome to visit again anytime._
> 
> _Love,_
> 
> _Hope (and Lyall)_

Sirius stared at the card with wide eyes, then looked at the jumper, then back at the card. 

“What is it?” Remus asked again. 

Sirius handed him the card wordlessly then picked up the jumper, which was impossibly soft and slightly oversized, not unlike how all of Remus’ jumpers are on him. His hands tightened on the fabric as he looked at Remus. “Did your mum make this?” 

“Yeah, I think so. Sirius, are you ok?” Remus reached out a hand to pull him to sit. 

“It’s just—Last year when she made me the scarf, I thought—But I’m not even spending Christmas with you all, and she still sent me a gift,” Sirius mumbled, staring at the jumper in his lap. 

“Well, yeah. Mam’s like that. Once you’re on her Christmas knitting list, you basically have to commit murder to get off of it, and even then, that’s not a given,” Remus said, teasing. When Sirius didn’t smile, he softened. “She really likes you, you know. She wouldn’t stop talking about when you’d be visiting next all summer holiday.” 

“Really?” Sirius said, looking up 

“Yeah, really.” 

Sirius smiled and glanced at the jumper again. “Maybe I can convince my mother to let me leave for New Year’s. Floo to your place?” 

Remus’ soft smile turned into a full grin. “I’d—we’d like that.” 


	16. Fireplace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> When Sirius runs away from home, Remus rushes to his side to comfort him.

###  **December 26, 1976**

"Annwyl!" Remus' mother called from the living room. 

Remus turned off the faucet and dried his hands before poking his head out of the kitchen. "What is it Mam?" 

"Someone's head popped up in the fireplace asking for you," she said. "Gave me a fright, but it seems important." 

"Sorry, Mrs. Lupin," Remus heard James' voice say from the embers in the fireplace. "I would have sent a letter, but it is rather urgent." 

Remus furrowed his brow and walked further into the living room. "What is it, James?" 

"It's Pa—Sirius." 

Remus hurried to the hearth and dropped to his knees to look at James' face better. "What happened?" 

"He's here. Took the Knight Bus, I think. He just showed up on my doorstep an hour ago in a right state, ranting something about his parents—" James looked to the side and mouthed something that Remus couldn't catch. 

"Is he ok? Is that him?" 

"No, sorry. That was Mum. Sirius is upstairs in the guest room. Once he calmed down enough to apply some bruising cream to his cheek—" 

"Bruising cream?" Remus blurted. "They hit him?" 

"He didn't say. As I was saying, once he calmed down enough, Mum showed him to the guest room—which I guess is his room now because there's no way I'm letting him go back to that house—and he hasn't said a peep since," James sighed. 

"What can I do?" Remus asked, feeling helpless. 

"I honestly don't know. He asked for you, though," James said. "It was the last thing he said before going upstairs." 

Remus whirled around to look at his mother, who had stayed behind to hear the conversation. 

"Go," she said, waving her hands at him. "Your friend needs you. I'll see if your father is around to pop you over there—" 

"It's ok, Mam. I can just travel by floo." He turned back to the fire. "Is that alright?" 

James nodded. "I'll have Mum set up the second guest room." 

Within fifteen minutes, Remus was packed and stepping through the green flames in the fireplace to the Potter's estate. He felt a pull at his stomach, although it was not as bad as the pull of apparition, and then he stumbled into the Potter's sitting room. 

"Moony!" James exclaimed, springing up from the couch to pull him into a hug. 

"Hey, Prongs. Happy Christmas." 

After a beat, James released him and gave him a weak smile. 

"Is he still upstairs?" Remus whispered. 

James nodded. "You go. It's the room right across from mine. I'll put your bag in the other guest room." 

Remus didn't need any directions other than that and instantly set off up the stairs. He took a left turn down the hallway then stopped in front of the door. Knocking softly, he called, "Padfoot? It's Remus. Can I—" 

"Come in," a hoarse voice called from inside. 

Remus opened the door and poked his head in to find Sirius sitting on the floor in front of the fire, his legs pulled into his chest and his chin resting on his knees as he stared at the flickering flames. Wordlessly, Remus padded into the room and sat next to him on the floor, letting their shoulders touch as he mimicked a similar posture to Sirius. It wasn't what he wanted to do. What Remus wanted to do was wrap his arms around his friend's shoulders and protect him; from his parents, from the impending war, from the world. Everything. But he also didn't want to overwhelm Sirius, so he sat in silence wait for him to seek out whatever comfort he wanted at the moment. 

He didn't have to wait long. Within seconds, Sirius leaned his head on Remus' shoulder. "You came," he croaked. 

Remus nodded. "Of course, I did. James said you asked for me, so I'm here." 

They continued to sit in silence for a while until Remus heard a sniff followed by a small sob. Remus' breath caught, and he turned to face his crying friend. "Oh, Pads. Shh, come here—" he pulled him into a hug— "shh, it's alright. You're alright," he murmured, rubbing a hand in soothing strokes up and down his back, feeling the soft knit of his mother’s sweater that he only just realized Sirius was wearing. 

Sirius clutched at the fabric on Remus' back as he buried his face in the crook of his neck. "I couldn't stay there anymore. It was awful, Moons. They're awful," he mumbled between choked breaths. 

"Did they hurt you?" Remus whispered. "Prongs said you had a bruise—did they hit you?" 

He shook his head. "No—well, not technically. Mother grabbed my arm to try to keep me from leaving, and I fell as I tried to shake her loose." 

Remus pulled back slightly and brought a hand up to inspect his face. "You don't have to cover for them, Pads." 

He leaned into Remus' touch. "I'm not. I really fell. Although, I think Kreacher may have tripped me on the way down, spiteful bastard." 

"And this is it? You're ok?" Remus asked, brushing a thumb along his cheekbone where there was a rapidly healing bruise. "Physically, I mean," he added. 

Sirius' eyes fluttered closed, and he nodded. 

"And emotionally?" 

"Have I ever been truly emotionally, ok?" He responded wearily. 

"Pads," Remus sighed. 

"I'll be alright, Moons. I know you probably want to know what happened, and I promise I'll tell you—and Mr. and Mrs. Potter and Prongs—but for now, can we just…" 

"Yeah, it can wait," Remus whispered, tucking a strand of hair behind Sirius' ear. 

"Good because now I'm tired." 

Remus nodded and let his hand fall away from Sirius' face. He stood then helped Sirius to his feet. "I'll let you get some rest." 

"No, wait!" Sirius' grip on his hand tightened. "I don't—I don't know if I want to be alone. Stay?" 

He gave Sirius a soft look, then nodded. "Yeah, I'll stay." 


	17. Ice Skates

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus learns to ice skate on the frozen lake behind the Potter’s house.

###  **December 27, 1976**

Remus woke that morning with Sirius' head tucked into the crook of his arm, his arm slung around Remus' middle. Sandwiched on Sirius' other side was James, who had joined them not long after Sirius had asked Remus to stay, claiming he wanted to "have a slumber party like they used to have when they were kids." Sirius knew it really was because James was worried about him, but he readily accepted the idea, anyway. 

Slowly, Remus reached up to tuck a few loose strands of Sirius' hair behind his ear so he could see if he was still asleep, which he was. 

James, on the other hand, was awake. "He seemed to sleep through the night," he whispered, propping himself up so they could talk over the still sleeping Sirius. 

"Yeah, which is something because that doesn't normally happen even under the best of circumstances," Remus whispered back. 

"Did he tell you anything last night?" 

Remus shook his head. "I don't know if anything actually happened or if it was just the culmination of everything over the years that made him snap, but whatever it was had him too rattled to say much of anything." 

"Did he at least explain his eye?" James asked, watching as Remus absentmindedly combed his fingers through Sirius' hair. 

"He said he fell—" Remus stopped short as Sirius began to stir. 

"Stop talking about me," Sirius mumbled into Remus' chest. 

"Sorry, Pads," Remus murmured. 

"Sorry, mate," James said. "You can tell us in your own time." 

"Thanks," Sirius whispered before sitting up. 

Remus instantly missed his warmth, but he pushed that thought back and sat up, too. 

"So, what do we want to get up to today?" James asked, lightening the subject. 

"Is the lake frozen?" Sirius asked. 

James' face lit up, and he nodded. "Yes, it is! Excellent idea, Padfoot. Are you up for some ice skating, Moony?" 

"I have no idea how," he admitted. "But I'm sure I could figure it out." 

Sirius broke into a grin. "Wait, does this mean that I get to be the one sharing a winter tradition with you this time?" 

Remus chuckled, feeling lighter after seeing Sirius' smile return to him. "I guess so." 

They quickly dressed, ate some breakfast with Mr. and Mrs. Potter, who asked no questions of what made Sirius show up on their doorstep the night before, and then they were off. When they arrived at the lake, Sirius transfigured their shoes into skates since he was of age and could now use magic outside of school. James didn't bother waiting for them once they all stepped onto the ice and started skating quick laps around the perimeter. However, Sirius stuck by Remus' side, which was good because, within seconds of stepping onto the ice, Remus lost his balance and nearly fell flat on his arse. 

Sirius caught his elbow before he went down. "It's ok, I've got you." 

"Are you graceful in everything you do?" Remus asked once he regained his balance. 

"Pretty much," he replied with a playful shrug. He spun around to be in front of Remus, skating backward as Remus attempted to skate forward. “Just try to glide forward like your marching along. I'll be here to catch you in case you fall." 

Remus nodded and slowly skated forward, wobbling slightly. "How did you learn to skate? It doesn't exactly seem like something you would have learned at home." 

"I didn't, not technically anyway. I spent a lot of time at my cousin's before leaving for Hogwarts, and my older cousin Andromeda taught me," Sirius explained. 

"Is that your cousin that married the muggle-born and had a baby?" He wobbled again and reached out for Sirius, who took his hands in his. 

"That's her. Try to keep your shoulders square. It'll help with balance." 

Remus did as instructed and felt a lot more steady on his feet. "Oh, that's much better." 

Sirius smiled at him and gave his hands a squeeze before letting them go. Then, he spun around again to be by Remus' side while they continued to skate slow laps around the frozen lake. 


	18. Snowflakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius and Remus partner up for the unofficial annual Hogwarts snowball fight.

###  **December 3, 1977**

Sirius ducked behind a fallen log near the edge of the forest, pulling Remus down with him. “Do you think this is enough cover?” he asked, panting to recover his breath. 

“Not sure,” Remus gasped, sounding almost as winded as Sirius. He peaked over the top of the log, presumably scanning for any sight of Peter and James, Lily and Mary, Fabian and Gideon, Alice and Frank, or Marlene and Dorcas, their opponents in what they have now deemed as “The Great Hogwarts Snowball Battle of 1977.” 

It was a tradition of the marauders over the past six years that during the first big snow of the season, they’d have a full-on snowball fight. In the early years, it was just the four of them, and there were no teams, but as the years went on, more people started to join in, and teams became necessary—well, more like pairs. It kept people more accountable for when they got out. 

“Do you see them?” Sirius asked. 

“No,” Remus said, sinking back down into the blanket of snow with a sigh of relief. “I think we’ve got some time to come up with a plan.” 

“And catch our breath. I’m winded.” 

“You’re on the Quidditch team, Pads. How are you already—?” Remus’ tease was muffled by Sirius clasping a gloved hand over his mouth. “Wha—?” 

“Shhh! I think I hear something,” Sirius hissed, then gestured to the woods to their left. 

Remus nodded, and Sirius slowly removed his hand, but they stayed close as they listened for any sounds of movement. After a few long moments, they decided that whatever Sirius had heard was most likely an animal, not one of their friends, and relaxed. 

Sirius looked back at Remus, who was still inches away from him, and his breath caught in his throat. He couldn’t help but stare at the other boy, whose tawny hair stuck out in little tufts from underneath his Gryffindor red beanie, whose long eyelashes were coated with the snowflakes that were still intermittently falling from the sky, and whose lips were delightfully pink and parted as he took shallow breaths. Merlin, he was gorgeous. And he was staring right back. 

“I think we’re safe,” Sirius breathed. 

“Yeah, if it were the enemy, we’d have been attacked by now,” Remus murmured in agreement. Then, he reached up and brushed Sirius’ hair, whispering “snow,” as some sort of explanation, not that he needed one to touch Sirius. Especially in such an intimate and reverent way. 

Without warning, a snowball came flying at them from the left, followed shortly by another one. Sirius quickly tried to duck out of the way, knocking Remus into the snow as he did, but it was too late. Each boy was hit with a snowball, Sirius to the shoulder and Remus to the side of the head. 

They heard a cheer followed by a shouted apology to Remus that sounded like it came from Alice, but before they could look, the enemies that had gotten the drop on them were gone. 

“Well, I guess we’re out,” Remus said, dusting snow off of the side of his face. 

“Is your face alright?” Sirius asked, bringing his hand up to caress the reddening spot on his cheek. 

“Yeah, I think so,” Remus whispered, staring up at him with a soft yet intense gaze. 

Sirius was suddenly very aware that he was on top of Remus and quickly rolled off of him. “Do you want to sneak to the kitchens to get some hot chocolate?” he asked, blushing furiously. “Since we’re out and all.” 

“And just leave everyone out here?” Remus asked, lifting his eyebrow in amusement. 

“Well, there’s no sense in us sitting and freezing our bollocks off, is there?” Sirius got up, dusted himself off, and extended a hand out to help Remus up. 

“Good point.” He took it and let Sirius help him to his feet, then let his hand linger in Sirius’ for a long moment. They locked eyes, and Remus smiled up at him in a different way from his typical smile. It was softer and a little more crooked, and Sirius liked to pretend that it was just for him. “But maybe we should bring some out for everyone.” 

“You’re so generous, Moons,” Sirius said playfully. 

Remus squeezed his hand, which he hadn’t realized he was still holding, then let go. “Come on, Pads.” 


	19. Hat and Gloves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus has a terrible habit of forgetting his hat and scarf.

###  **December 17, 1977**

It was a week until Christmas, and none of the seventh year Gryffindors had finished shopping for their Christmas presents. Between NEWTs and the impending war, present shopping had been wholly forgotten. Thankfully, as seventh years they were able to go to Hogsmeade any Saturday they liked. So the Saturday before Christmas Eve, the marauders, Lily, Marlene, and Dorcas found themselves walking through the snow-covered streets on the hunt for gifts.

They decided to split up into groups to make things go faster. Lily, Marlene, Sirius, and Remus bid goodbye to James, Peter, and Dorcas, promising to meet up at the Three Broomsticks for lunch around noon. Admittedly, Sirius was in a better position gift wise than the rest of his friends. He’d bought his most important present over the summer—the one for Remus. He knew he shouldn’t rank his friends' importance when it came to gifts, but he couldn’t help it. Getting a present for James or Peter was easy. They had so many interests and hobbies, so he could easily get them a new broom compass or a vintage chess set—which is what he ends up finding—and they’d know how much he cared for them.

But Remus... well, frankly, he more than cared for Remus, and since Sirius couldn’t figure out the words to tell him that, he wanted a gift to show just how he felt about him. So when Sirius found a vintage of Remus’ favorite childhood book, The Wizard of Oz, while exploring muggle London, he knew he had to get it. The book wasn’t worth much—it wasn’t a first edition, and it was a misprint—but something about that made it more Remus. It had a story to its imperfections.

About a quarter ‘till noon, Sirius and company stumbled out of Gladrags Wizardwear, where Marlene had just purchased a mood ring for Dorcas, and were greeted by a snowy gust of wind to the face. Sirius popped his jacket's collar to protect his neck and shoved his hands in his pockets where his hat and gloves were stashed. Beside him, he felt Remus shiver and step reflexively closer to him, as if to share body heat. Sirius looked over to see him burrowing into his coat and scarf to try to keep warm.

He shook his head. Despite how often Remus was cold, the boy had a terrible habit of never remembering to bring his hat and gloves anywhere. So the tops of his ears were bright red, and his sandy curls were sticking out in all directions from the wind, which Sirius knew he hated despite how adorable it looked.

Sirius pulled the hat and gloves out of his jacket pocket, then nudged Remus with his elbow.

“Here, take these,” he said, trying to hand him the bundle.

But Remus shook his head. “I'm not taking your hat from you.”

“Moons, I’m not wearing it. It’s fine.”

“But you’ll be cold,” Remus protested.

Sirius let out an exasperated sigh and pulled Remus to a stop so that he could pull the hat onto Remus’ head himself. “There. See? Better. Now take these, too,” he said, handing him the gloves, “because I’m sure you have icicle hands by now.”

Remus blushed. Or it was the wind. Probably the wind. “I’ve got pockets. I’ll be fine.”

“But how are you going to carry your packages?” Sirius retorted.

“Well, you have packages to carry, too,” Remus fired back.

Sirius let out another exasperated sigh. “Just put the gloves on, Re. It’ll make me feel better,” he said, then thought to add a quiet, “please,” at the end for effect.

Remus sighed, too, but took the gloves and slipped them onto his hands, which were starting to go pale from the cold wind. “Happy now?”

Sirius grinned and nodded. “I am, thank you,” he said smugly. 

Remus’ lips parted, and his breath stilled, and that was when Sirius realized that he’d been subconsciously fussing with Remus’ scarf—something far more intimate than just friends would do, mostly based on the look Lily was giving them at that moment.

Sirius dropped his hands quickly and stepped back. “So, lunch?”

“Yeah, lunch,” Remus mumbled, and they set off for the Three Broomsticks to meet the others.


	20. Mistletoe

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A mistletoe misunderstanding leads to a confession.

###  **December 24, 1977**

Sirius crept back through the portrait hole and flung off the invisibility cloak. "I bear food and alcohol," he proclaimed, holding up the baskets of goodies he procured from Hogsmeade. 

"You're a godsend," Marlene said from the overstuffed armchair she was sharing with Darlene. They—along with the marauders, Lily, and Mary—had decided to stay at Hogwarts for the Christmas holidays. In part because it was their last one before graduation, but mostly because December's full moon landed on Christmas Day, and no one wanted Remus to be alone for the holidays. It was also why they were celebrating on Christmas Eve instead of Christmas morning. 

Sirius set the baskets on the study table with a loud thud and started to unload them. 

"Here, Pads, I'll help," Remus offered, emerging from the cocoon of the new blanket Lily had gotten him. 

"No, it's ok, Moons. You can rest—" But Remus was already up on his feet and walking over to the table. 

"I'm fine, Sirius. I'm not as tired as I usually am, I promise." He sent him a soft smile. 

"Still, I've got it," Sirius insisted, cutting off Remus' path. He put his hands on Remus' shoulders to turn him around and lightly shove him back toward his seat by the fireplace when, out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flash of green on the ceiling. 

_Shit_. _Damn James and his insistence on hanging that bloody plant everywhere._

A chorus of wolf whistles filled the room as everyone noticed the mistletoe hanging above the pair. 

Remus' eyes widened and turned upward toward the ceiling. "Oh," he breathed. 

"Well, go on, you two," James said cheekily. 

Sirius shook his head, unable to speak, and dropped his hands back to his sides. 

"It's fine, Pads," Remus whispered. "Let's just get it over with." 

Sirius shook his head again, then managed to say, "no," aloud. 

"Come on, mate, it's just a little kiss," James teased. 

Except it wasn't. It was Remus. Sirius didn't want to "just get it over with." That wasn't how a kiss was supposed to go, especially if it would be with Remus. 

"I said no, James!" Sirius snapped. "I shouldn't be forced to kiss someone just because you wanted to have dumb excuses to snog your girlfriend all over the common room!" 

"Yes, because kissing me would be so awful, wouldn't it?" Remus hissed, just loud enough for Sirius to hear. 

"Moons, that's not—" He made a grab for Remus' hand, but Remus shoved past him and rushed up the stairs to the boys' dorms. 

_Fuck. Shit. Fucking shit._

"Re, wait—" 

Remus burst through the door to their dorm room and whirled around, hurt and anger swirling in his eyes. "What do you want, Sirius? Come to continue telling me how disgusting you find me?" 

"Remus, I don't—" he took a step forward and reached out, but Remus recoiled. 

"Flirting with me? Sure. Why not? But kissing me? No, that would be outrageous. I mean, who would actually want to snog a werewo—?" 

"I would!" Sirius interjected. This was not how he'd planned on confessing his feelings, but he continued anyway. "You have no idea how badly I want to kiss you. I've been dreaming of kissing you for so bloody long, and 'getting it over with' under the mistletoe in front of half our year was not how I pictured it." Sirius raked a hand through his hair then took a step closer. "When I said I didn't want to be forced to kiss you, I meant that if I ever got to kiss you, I didn't want it to be because of some tradition revolving around a stupid poisonous plant. I wanted it to be on our own accord." 

Remus stares at him for a long moment, and Sirius wondered if he'd ruined things beyond repair. But then, he asked in a small voice, "What did you picture?" 

Sirius cocked his head, so Remus clarified. "How did you picture our first kiss going?" 

"Merlin—Three years' worth of dreaming led to a lot of different scenarios." 

"Was Christmas Eve in the middle of our dorm room one of those scenarios?" 

For the second time that night, Sirius couldn't speak coherently, so he just shook his head. 

"Can it be?" Remus asked, taking a tentative step to close the distance between them. 

He was close now, close enough for Sirius to settle his hands on his slender hips. Sirius nodded, and Remus gave Sirius a small smile and looped his arms around his neck, pulling himself up on his toes to press their foreheads together. 

He was nervous—Sirius could tell by the way he closed his eyes and inhaled shakily—but so was Sirius. His heart was beating a kilometer a minute. But he was a Gryffindor for Merlin's sake, and Gryffindors didn't chicken out of things like kissing their best friend who they've been falling half in love with for the past three years (or entirely in love with over the past seven years, if he were honest with himself). So, summoning all of his courage, Sirius dipped his head and pressed his lips against Remus' for a soft, chaste kiss. 


	21. Quilt

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus and Sirius spend their last Christmas Eve night at Hogwarts cuddled together in the common room.

###  **December 25, 1977**

It was close to midnight by the time to common room cleared out, leaving Sirius and Remus alone. They sat on the couch, both snuggled under the new quilt Lily gave Remus earlier that evening. It was a little small for both of them, but they didn’t mind snuggling close to fit. After waiting so long to admit their feelings for each other, they weren’t beating around the bush anymore.

Sirius pressed a kiss to the top of Remus’ head, making him look up.

“Hi,” Remus whispered.

“You look tired. We should get you to bed,” Sirius whispered back, brushing a few errant curls away from Remus’ forehead.

Remus leaned into the gentle touch and smiled. “Not yet. ‘M not ready to leave your arms yet.”

Sirius’ heart fluttered. “You don’t have to. My bed would fit both of us if we squeezed.”

“So would this couch,” Remus countered. He leaned up a pressed a soft kiss to the corner of Sirius’ mouth. “And down here, I can do that as much as I want without having to worry about Prongs or Wormy hearing.”

Sirius hummed and brought their lips together for a more firm kiss. “You make a good argument.” He kissed him again. “Well, at least budge up so I can stretch my legs out, too.”

With a nod, Remus shifted to allow Sirius to lie down on the couch, then arranged himself to press along his side, his head resting on Sirius chest.

Sirius pulled the quilt around Remus’ shoulders and nuzzled his curls. “Comfortable?”

Remus nodded, then tilted his face up to press his lips to Sirius’ jaw. “As comfortable as I can be.”

Sirius hummed and stroked Remus’ hair. “Achy?”

He nodded again.

“Anything I can do to help?”

“You’re already helping by distracting me and keeping me company,” he assured Sirius. Then, he smirked. “But, if you wanted, you could kiss my aches and pains to make them better.”

Sirius couldn’t help but laugh. “You’re incorrigible.” He kissed him quickly. “I love it.”

“Gotta make up for lost time,” Remus mumbled against Sirius’ lips.

“Luckily, we have a lot of time to do that.” He found Remus’ hand under the quilt and brought it to his lips to press a kiss to his palm and then to his wrist. “Here?”

Remus nodded, and Sirius trailed kisses to his elbow. “How about here?”

He nodded again and let his eyes close.

Sirius nuzzled his shoulder. “Here?”

Remus let out a breathy sigh as Sirius brushed feather-light kisses along his collarbone and jawline until finally, he couldn’t take it any longer. “Pads?”

“Yeah, Moony?”

“Kiss me already.”

He smiled, then captured Remus’ lips with his. They lay there sharing lazy kisses until both of them were nearly asleep. When they finally pulled apart, Sirius checked his watch.

“It’s officially Christmas,” he whispered.

He felt Remus smile against his neck. “Happy Christmas, Pads.”

Sirius smiled and pulled the quilt higher to cover them better. “Happy Christmas, my love.”

Remus hummed and squeezed him around the middle. “Mmmm, love,” he murmured nonsensically. His breathing evened out as sleep took him, and Sirius wasn’t far behind him.


	22. Silver and Gold

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lily insists that everyone pitch in to decorate the Order headquarters for Christmas.

###  **December 20, 1978**

"Marlene, you have to stop pacing. I'm sure they're alright," Sirius said gently. 

"That's easy for you to say!" Marlene snapped, whirling around to glare at him. "Your boyfriend is sitting right there—" she gestured at Remus, who was currently residing in Sirius' lap—"meanwhile Dorcas is out, Merlin knows where—because Dumbledore won't let us tell each other what our missions are in case of spies—probably dead in a ditch!" 

Sirius prepared to snap something back at her, but Remus squeezed his hand as a silent message to hold his tongue. Yelling back wouldn't help in this situation. 

Marlene took a deep breath and deflated. "I'm sorry, Siri. I know it's not your fault. It's just—it's been two days since Dorc and Pete were supposed to be back, and I can't help—" She broke off with a frustrated sigh and collapsed onto the side of the couch opposite where James and Lily were snuggled up together. 

Tensions had been high ever since they and their friends had all graduated and immediately became members of the Order. They became quieter, more tired, smiled less. Missions were a terror all either own, but sometimes it was even more terrifying sitting at Order headquarters and waiting for one of them to return. The room was silent for a long while until finally, Lily broke it. 

"Alright, you know what? Sitting around isn't going to help things," she said with determination as she stood up. "Come on, Jamie, we're going out." 

"Where are we going?" James asked, standing, too. 

"We're getting a Christmas tree. This place is far too dreary, and it'll give Dorcas and Peter more cheerful to come back to." She grabbed her coat off the rack by the front door, then tossed James his. 

"But we don't have any ornaments," Marlene said. "And isn't it a little late to be getting a tree?" 

"Actually—" Remus pivoted in Sirius' lap to look at him—"Pads, do you still have the box of ornaments we made our fourth year?" 

Sirius grinned. "I think they're somewhere in my room at the Potters. Rem and I could pop over and—" 

"Is everyone going to just leave me here by myself?" Marlene interrupted. 

"No, Jamie can go grab them. I'll find us a tree while you three stay here," Lily said gently, before adding a quieter, "just in case." 

The air went still for a moment, then Remus climbed out of Sirius' lap and pulled his wand out of his pocket. "We'll get started on garland and lights." 

Lily sent him a grateful smile for trying to keep the mood light, then she and James disappear through the front door to apparate away since the wards Dumbledore and Moody placed on headquarters prevented apparition inside or out. 

Remus stuck a hand out to Marlene to help her off the couch. "Come on, Marls. You were the best at orchideous our fifth year." 

"You flatterer." She smiled, but it didn't reach her eyes, and took his hand. 

Over the next hour, the three of them set to decorating the drawing-room in the small house used for headquarters. While Marlene and Sirius conjured evergreen garland to hang on the walls near the ceilings and lighted orbs that twinkled silver and gold to float in the air, Remus did his best to make hot chocolate that tasted as decadent as his mothers. It wasn't remotely close, but it was still pretty good, according to Sirius. 

When the front door clicked open, everyone froze and reached for their wands, an unfortunate habit they all picked up whenever they spent time at headquarters. James and Lily rounded the corner, carrying a small tree and a box of ornaments, and Sirius stepped forward, raising his wand. 

"What did each of you get me for Christmas last year?" he asked. 

"A Joy Division record and a box of dung bombs," James answered at the same time Lily said, "The jumper you're currently wearing." 

Sirius let out a breath of relief and lowered his wand. "Merlin, I really hate doing that," he said with a sigh. He looked down at the patchy tree Lily was pulling behind her. "Lily, what the heck is that?" 

"It's our tree. There weren't a lot of options," she said defensively. 

"I'm sure it'll look great once we get it all decorated," Remus piped up from the corner, where he was clearing a space for the tree to go. 

And he was right. Once all of the homemade ornaments and the silver and gold tinsel Sirius conjured were on the tree, the bare spots were hardly noticeable. 

Remus slid an arm around Sirius' waist and rested his head in the crook of his shoulder. "See, all our little Charlie Brown tree needed was a little love." 

Lily laughed, but the pureblood witch and wizards in the room just stared at them in confusion. 

"Charlie Brown is a muggle Christmas movie," Remus explained. 

"Can we add it to our list?" Sirius asked, nuzzling his nose into Remus' curls. 

"Sure, love." 

They all stood, admiring the tree when the front door clicked open for the second time that evening. They whipped around, wands gripped tightly in their hands, to see Dorcas standing in the doorway to the drawing-room with Peter behind her, both a little worse for wear but generally safe. Marlene surged forward to bring Dorcas into a hug but stopped herself and raised her wand. 

"Place we first kissed," she croaked. 

"Behind the Quidditch pitch—" Dorcas barely had the answer out before she was swept into a fierce hug. 

Remus approached Peter when it was clear Marlene wasn't going to question him and raised his wand. "Last prank we pulled at Hogwarts." 

"Dung bombs in Filch's office. It was also our first prank," Peter said, the exhaustion evident in his voice. 

Remus nodded and lowered his wand. 

"I see you lot decorated," Peter observed. "Moody is going to kill you." 

Remus laughed, then pulled him into a hug that was quickly joined by the other two marauders and Lily. 


	23. Secret Santa

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The younger Order members do a Secret Santa exchange instead of getting everyone presents, but Sirius still has a little something to give his boyfriend.

###  **December 24, 1978**

“Alright, everybody, are we ready?” James asked as everyone settled in the living room at Order headquarters.

Remus sat on the floor between Sirius’ legs across from Frank and Alice, who sat much the same way. Marlene and Dorcas had claimed the small armchair by the fireplace for the both of them, not willing to be apart for even a moment since Dorcas came back from her and Peter’s mission a few days prior. Peter sat on the couch next to Lily, who leaned her head on his shoulder while James stood in front of the tree, playing Santa Claus.

For the second year in a row, the gang had decided to exchange presents on Christmas Eve. Although this year, it wasn’t because of a full moon; it was because it was the only time everyone could get together between Order missions and family gatherings that had become all that much more important during a war. That year was also different because instead of the space under the Christmas tree being filled with presents like years previous, there was only one present per person because, as James had said when he suggested the Secret Santa idea, “no one has time to do a bunch of shopping and wrapping this year.”

There was a chorus of agreements as everyone said they were ready, then James adjusted his red and white trimmed Santa hat and started handing out presents. They went around in turns, each opening a gift, then waiting for their Secret Santa to reveal themselves so that they could open their own gift, and so forth.

When it got to Remus, who had gotten Lily a collection of Muggle poetry books, he opened a box of Honeduke’s Chocolate and Dungbombs. “I don’t even need to guess who this is from,” he said with a laugh before looking directly at Peter.

“Well, I wasn’t about to break tradition now, was I?” Peter said defensively.

“Thank you, Pete. I’d get up to hug you, but I don’t think Sirius is going to let me get up.”

Sirius wrapped his arms tighter around Remus’ waist from behind and hooked his chin over his shoulder. “Nope. Lily, hug Peter for Remus.”

“On it,” Lily sang, as James dug around for Peter’s present amongst the dwindling pile.

Remus knowingly smiled as Peter ripped the paper off the Hall and Oats record he’d helped Sirius find for Peter a few weeks ago in a Muggle record shop nearby.

“I’ve been looking for this one for ages!” Peter exclaimed, grinning as he looked around the room at the few people who hadn’t been revealed yet.

Sirius raised his hand.

“Thanks, Padfoot. Remus, hug your boyfriend for me.”

Remus smiled and patted Sirius’ arms, which were draped across his stomach. “Switch so I can cuddle you, and then you’ll have your arms free to open your present.”

Sirius sighed with a complaint but complied and allowed Remus to situate himself behind him. He opened his gift, a bottle of fire whiskey, and a set of light-up novelty shot glasses from Frank, which he promised to break into once presents were over, then leaned against Remus’ chest contently while the last few gifts were opened.

Within a quarter of an hour, all gifts were opened, and fire whiskey shots were passed around. Then, within half an hour, couples paired up to leave and apparate home, leaving Remus and Sirius to be the last to leave. Remus started to get up to put on his coat when Sirius pulled him back down to the floor.

“Hang on, Moons. There’s still one more present under the tree,” Sirius said.

“Prongs couldn’t have missed one. Everyone—” Remus cut himself off as he caught a glimpse of Sirius’ mischievous smile. “Pads, you didn’t. We promised we would only do the Secret Santa this year.”

Sirius simply smiled and crawled over to the tree to find a small, rectangular box tied with ribbon. “This isn’t a Christmas present; it’s an anniversary present. You didn’t forget, did you?”

Remus scoffed, but there was a hint of a smile on his lips. “Of course, I didn’t forget. It was only the single greatest day of my life, tied with getting my Hogwarts letter.” He crawled over to meet Sirius by the tree and gave him a quick kiss. “I just didn’t know we were doing presents. I don’t have anything for you.”

“My present will be you agreeing to the thing in that box.” Sirius forced the box—which was too big to be a ring box, so at least Remus didn’t have to panic about that quite yet—into his hands.

“Pads, I swear if you got me something like handcuffs that I could have accidentally opened in front of our friends—”

Sirius laughed. “It’s not handcuffs—although I am curious as to what you’d say about that. Just open it.”

Remus rolled his eyes, then tentatively undid the ribbon. He lifted the lid off the box to find a solitary key on a ring with a black paw print keychain. “Sirius, is this what I think it is?” He asked, his voice shaking.

Sirius nodded and reached to take Remus’ hands in his. “Move in with me?”

“Into your room at the Potter’s?”

He shook his head. “I got us a flat. It was my Uncle Alphard’s flat that he kept here in London. I inherited it when he died. We’ll have to furnish it, though, because half the stuff in there was Black family heirlooms I wanted nothing to do with.”

“I think it’ll be nice to put our own stamp on the place, anyway,” Remus mused, smiling.

“Wait, so is that a yes?” Sirius asked, his voice brimming with hopeful excitement.

“Of course it’s a yes. I lived with you for seven years. These past few months of not seeing you every day and waking up to your face have been miserable—” Remus barely got the word out before Sirius’ lips crashed onto his with so much force that it nearly knocked him flat on his back.


	24. Frost

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius and Remus spend a frosty winter day cozied up in bed.

###  **December 28, 1978**

Light streamed in through the window, dancing across Remus' face, waking him up from the most pleasant dream he'd had in a while. He was in the Bahamas—or at least he thought it was the Bahamas. Either way, it was warm and sunny, something London wasn't at the moment based on the thick layer of frost on the bare window. With a soft groan, he buried his face into Sirius' bare chest to block the light and pulled the blanket up higher over his shoulders to block some of the cold. Sirius' arms tightened around his shoulders, letting Remus know that he was awake.

"We really need to hang curtains," Remus mumbled.

"I don't know, I kind of like waking up with the sun," Sirius said into Remus' hair.

"But your beloved sun woke me up from an enjoyable dream."

"Really now?" Sirius smirked.

"Not that kind of dream," Remus said, smiling against Sirius' chest. "Although it might have gone in that direction if I hadn't woken up."

"Well, now, I'm curious."

"We were the only ones on a warm, sunny beach. You were lying out in the sun, looking all fit in your swim trunks," Remus said, pressing a kiss to his sternum. "I was under an umbrella, trying not to repeat what happened when we went to the beach in the summer between fifth and sixth year."

"Awww, but you get all cute and freckly when you've been out in the sun."

"And red like a tomato," Remus countered.

Sirius hummed in acknowledgment. "But then I get to rub cooling gel on your back." He began to idly trace shapes on the patch of Remus skin between his pajama bottoms and where his jumper had ridden up. "It's a wonderful excuse to be able to touch your lovely naked torso."

Remus sighed contentedly. "Well, you don't need an excuse anymore. All you have to do is ask. Although, to be fair, you could have just asked then, too, and I would have said yes."

"Well, I didn't know that at the time," Sirius replied. "But there's no use dwelling on it, now. It all worked out in the best way possible."

Remus smiled and leaned up to kiss him. "Yes, it did."

Sirius gave him a soft smile, then after a moment, it turned into one of mischief. "So, since all I have to do is ask," he began, wiggling his eyebrows.

Remus laughed and playfully shoved at him. "It is far too cold for me to be taking my jumper off right now."

Sirius laughed, too. "Ah, so do I have to take you to the Bahamas for that?"

Remus smirked. "Either that or put up some curtains that block some of the cold. Look, the window is frosted over!"

Sirius nodded and groped for his wand on the bedside table. He quickly conjured some brown plaid curtains that coordinated with the orange, red, and brown quilt on their king-sized bed. Then, he grinned and waved his wand over the two of them, and Remus felt the telltale signs of a warming charm travel over him.

"Really?" Remus said, raising an eyebrow in amusement.

"It's not too cold now, is it?" Sirius said cheekily.

"No, it's nice and toasty."

"Good. Anything for my Moons. The charm is only extended over the bed, though, so I can't make promises for the rest of the room."

"Oh, no. I guess we will just have to spend the entire day in bed," Remus said with an exaggerated sigh.

"A true tragedy." Sirius laughed and dragged his hands up Remus' sides, pausing just at his ribs. He leaned down and kissed him slowly. "Now, I believe there was mention of losing this jumper?"

Remus hummed and nodded before dragging Sirius' lips back to his.


	25. Boots

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius’ boots are much better in the snow than Remus’, so he steals them to run to the store, not that Sirius minds.

###  **December 8, 1979**

“Honeybun, I’m home!” Sirius called as the door slammed shut behind him. He shook off some snow the had accumulated on his shoulders in the brief moment he stepped outside to apart home from St. Mungo’s and kicked off his combat boots.

“I thought we talked about you not calling me that,” Remus said dryly as he emerged from the kitchen, wearing an apron and holding his wand at his side. He stared blankly, but a smile played on his lips as he walked over to press a kiss to Sirius’ cheek.

“And I thought you were supposed to verify my identity before kissing me hello,” Sirius teased, stepping back before Remus was able to actually kiss him.

Remus sighed and rolled his eyes. “I hate that we’re supposed to do this all the time, now, not just when we’re at headquarters, but fine. What do you smell in amortentia?”

“Bergamot, honey, chocolate—specifically Honeyduke’s Dark Chocolate, because it does have a different smell—and the forest after a fresh rain,” he answered, then wrapped an arm around Remus’ waist to pull him in for a kiss. “Someone is feeling a little sentimental today.”

“Haven’t used that question in a while,” Remus explained with a shrug.

Sirius gave him another quick kiss then let him go so he could remove his coat. “So, what smells so good?”

“Mam’s spaghetti. Well, almost. We’re out of wine to finish it off.”

“Do you want me to run back out and grab some?” Sirius was already starting to put his coat back on when Remus stopped him.

“You just got home, and frankly, you look like you had a rough day,” Remus said, gently squeezing his forearm. “I’ll go. I would have run out earlier, but I didn’t want you coming home to an empty flat.”

Sirius smiled weakly. They’d both gotten in the habit of making sure they never left the flat at the same time unless they were going somewhere together. Even though their flat was un-plotable and decked out with the strongest protective charms, with the war getting worse, it was easy to assume the worse when they came home to find the other wasn’t there.

“Are you sure?” he asked. “I don’t mind.”

Remus lifted on his toes to kiss the corner of his mouth. “I’m sure. You go take a shower, then keep an eye on the sauce. I’ll be back soon.”

He nodded and headed off for the master bedroom to change out of his healer’s uniform. After he sufficiently washed the day off, he changed into a pair of plaid pajama pants and one of Remus’ oversized jumpers that just happened to fit him perfectly and padded into the kitchen to stir the stockpot of marinara sauce simmering on the stove.

He’d just finished setting the table when he heard the front door click open. “That was quick,” he said as he headed to the living room and leaned against the doorway. “Remus Lupin, are you wearing my boots? And my jacket?”

“Mine were in the closet, and yours are better for snow—oh!” His explanation was cut off with a sudden kiss, which he melted into on instinct before pulling away sharply. “That doesn’t count as a proper question, you know.”

Sirius grumbled and pressed his nose into Remus’ neck. “Fine. The same question you asked me then.”

“Clove, fresh linens, oak…” he broke off with a soft hum as Sirius brushed his lips just below his ear. “And the forest after a fresh rain.”

Sirius hummed. “Knew it was you.”

“Not that I’m complaining,” Remus began as Sirius trailed kisses along his jaw, “but there’s dinner on the stove. Also, I’m still wearing my jacket and boots.”

“You mean my jacket and boots.”

“Oh, is that what’s gotten into you?” he teased.

Sirius nodded and nipped at his bottom lip. “You look good in leather.”

Remus laughed, threaded his fingers in Sirius’ still wet hair, and pulled him close for a quick but thorough kiss. “Sure, I do,” he said, not convinced. “Let me just add the wine to the sauce, and then we can have dinner.”

“Or I’ll add the wine while you head to our room, and I can show you how good I think you look while we wait for it to simmer,” Sirius said, plucking the brown paper bag out of his hand and dashing to the kitchen before Remus could protest.

“You’re incorrigible,” he called after him, but there was no trace of malice in his voice. Instead, he smiled as he took off his—well, Sirius’ coat and boots—and padded to the bedroom.


	26. Winter Wonderl

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius and Remus take a walk through the woods in the snow.

###  **December 15, 1980**

Remus sat in a chair closest to the fireplaces, a blanket wrapped tightly around his shoulders. In one hand, he held a mug of tea Sirius expected had gone cold hours ago, and in the other, a book he was pretending to read but wasn’t really. Remus was too on edge to focus. So was Sirius, but Remus was handling it worse than he was. In the past few months, the war had gone from bad to worse; Sirius was on Order missions every other week, Lily and James were hidden away somewhere to protect Harry, and Remus had been given a mission from Dumbledore that he was still mulling over. He hadn’t told Sirius what the assignment was, but from his reaction, Sirius could only guess that it was impossibly dangerous, which, of course, meant that Sirius didn’t want him to take it. No advance in the cause was worth Remus risking his life any more than he already was, but every time Sirius tried to tell him that, he would shut down. And Sirius couldn’t take it anymore. He missed Remus’ smile, the mischievous twinkle in his eye, his warm, honey-like laugh. 

Quickly making a decision, Sirius tossed his own book on the coffee table and stood up. He padded over to Remus and gently pulled the cold mug of tea and book out of his hands. 

Remus blinked up at him and frowned. “I was reading that.”

“No, you weren’t. You hadn’t turned a page in nearly half an hour,” Sirius said, trying to keep his voice light. 

“Watching me, were you?” Remus teased, but the usual twinkle in his eye was missing. 

“Well, you’re pretty to look at,” Sirius said, tossing him a wink. Then he grabbed his hands and pulled him to his feet. “Come on, we’re going out.”

“Where?” Remus asked as Sirius pulled him toward the door. 

“For a walk.” Sirius shoved his feet into his combat boots, then took Remus’ jacket from the hook and tossed it to him.

“But it’s cold,” Remus protested. 

“Yes, but when was the last time you went outside—and not for a mission,” he quickly added before Remus could answer. 

Remus sighed. “I don’t remember, to be honest.”

“Exactly.” Sirius nodded and slipped on his leather jacket, then wound his Gryffindor scarf around his neck. “So bundle up, buttercup.”

“Buttercup?” Remus lifted an eyebrow in mild amusement as he slipped his jacket and shoes on. 

Sirius nodded again and flashed a grin before extending a hand. Remus smiled—a little wearily, but it was a start—and took his hand. Sirius pulled them out the door, waving a hand behind him to enable the locks on their flat, then checked down either end of the hall before giving Remus a quick warning and disapparating away with a crack. They landed with a soft crunch in a snow-filled clearing of trees, and Remus promptly smacked Sirius on the arm with his free hand.

“A little more warning before you apparate us somewhere, hey?” He scolded.

“Sorry, love,” Sirius said

“Where are we, anyway?”

“Forest of Dean.”

“I thought we were just going for a walk,” Remus said skeptically. 

“We are… in the Forest of Dean.” Sirius leaned down to kiss to the corner of Remus’ scowl. “Come on, Moons. We’re in a veritable winter wonderland right now. Give me a smile, please?”

He sighed and looked down at their feet. “I’m sorry, I know I’ve been a little off. It’s just that I can’t stop thinking about—”

Sirius shushed him and tilted his chin up to press their lips together. “No thinking and no talking about thinking. We can do that later. Right now, we’re going to get out of our heads and enjoy the snow and fresh air.” He kissed him again, happily humming when Remus stepped closer and lifted on his toes to deepen the kiss ever so slightly. 

When they pulled apart, Remus smiled more brightly than before. “Thank you.”

Sirius felt his heart unclench slightly in relief. There he was—his Remus. “Of course, my love.”


	27. Sugarplum

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Remus and Sirius read baby Harry a Christmas bedtime story.

###  **December 23, 1981**

“Alright, you little monster,” James said, scooping up a giggling baby Harry and perching him on his hip. “Time for bed.”

Harry babbled at him, then looked at Remus and Sirius, who were sitting on the couch, and pointed. 

“Oh? Do you want Uncle Moony and Uncle Padfoot to tuck you in?” James asked. 

“Moon!”

Sirius laughed as James frowned.

“I’m still bitter that he’s managed your nickname before mine,” James said. 

“P’s are hard,” Sirius said in consolation. “I’ve been trying to teach him Padfoot for weeks, and the closest we got was ‘afoo’—”

“Which I still argue was just a garbled sound,” Remus interjected before standing up to take Harry from James’ outstretched arms. “We’ll take him up if you want to help Lily with the cleaning up.”

“Thanks, mates,” James said, giving them a little salute before bending to kiss Harry on the top of the head. “Night, little monster.”

Remus motioned for Sirius to join him before climbing the stairs to the nursery. He settled Harry in his crib then bent to kiss his forehead.

“We should tell him a story,” Sirius said. “Something Christmassy.”

Remus smiled. “I think I have something.”

“Do I know it?”

Remus shook his head and crossed the nursery to get the rocking chair and pull it next to the crib. Before he could sit down, though, Sirius slipped into the chair and grinned, patting his lap. Fondly rolling his eyes, Remus sat perched on Sirius’ knees. 

“Alright, his one is called ‘The Night Before Christmas,’” Remus began. “‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse—”

“You should make it Wormtail,” Sirius interrupted.

“But that wouldn’t rhyme.”

“He’s one; he won’t notice if it doesn’t rhyme.”

Remus sighed. “Fine. ‘Twas the night before Christmas, when all through the house, not a creature was stirring, not even a Wormtail. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Nicholas—” 

“Sirius?” Sirius offered.

“Are you Santa Claus now?” Remus asked in amusement.

“Well, you are in my lap.” He waggled his eyebrows, making Remus laugh.

“Alright, but stop interrupting. The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, in hopes that St. Sirius soon would be there. The Prongslet was nestled all snug in his bed, while visions of sugarplums danced in his heads. And mamma in her ‘kerchief, and Prongs in his cap, had just settled our brains for a long winter’s nap…” Remus trailed off as he noticed Harry had closed his eyes and his breathing had evened out. 

“Is he asleep?” Sirius whispered, peering over the edge of the crib.

Remus nodded and quietly slipped off Sirius’ lap to flick the lights off. Then, they crept out of the room and slowly pulled the door closed. 

“So, what are sugarplums, and why are they dancing?” Sirius asked once they got back downstairs. 

“I think they’re a kind of sweet,” Remus replied, dropping onto the couch. 

“Ah, then maybe I should start calling you sugarplum, because you’re awfully sweet,” Sirius said cheekily, dropping onto the couch next to him and putting his head in Remus’ lap. 

“Merlin, please, no. That’s corny, even for you, Pads,” Remus said with a laugh.

“Aww, but sugarplum,” Sirius pouted, a hint of laughter in his voice. 

“What’s wrong with the nickname I already have?”

“It’s not Christmassy enough?”

Remus chuckled. “You’re ridiculous.”

Sirius grinned. “You love it.”

Remus’ smile softened, and he carded a hand through Sirius’ wavy hair. “Very much, yes.”


	28. Fireplace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius makes sure that this year’s Christmas is unforgettable.

###  **December 24, 1982**

Sirius normally didn’t make a big fuss over their anniversary at Remus’ request, seeing as it fell on Christmas Eve. He still made a fuss, of course, but a small fuss—usually a small gift, dinner just the two of them, and maybe a nice bottle of wine. But that day wasn’t just any anniversary. It had been five years since their first kiss in the dorms at Hogwarts and four years since Sirius had asked Remus to move in with him, and there was no way that Sirius was going to let the day go by without some sort of fanfare. So, he asked Lily to steal Remus for the day under the guise of needing help with some last-minute Christmas shopping so that Sirius could set up the flat for his surprise. 

He spent the entire day making Hope’s signature marinara sauce for dinner, baked a chocolate cheesecake for dessert, and set a bottle of white wine to chill in the icebox. He lit the entire living room with floating candles and laid a blanket and several pillows out on the floor in front of the fireplace for them to enjoy their dinner. He was just getting changed out of his food spattered clothes when he heard the lock on the front door click. He quickly pulled his navy blue jumper on over his head and rushed to the living room in time to greet Remus. 

“Pads, I’m ho—oh.” He stopped halfway through taking his coat off to look around the room before finally focusing his gaze on Sirius. “Padfoot, what did you do? What happened to not making a fuss?”

Sirius grinned and closed the distance between them to press a chaste kiss to his cheek. “I couldn’t help it,” he admitted not so sheepishly. 

Remus shook his head fondly. “You’re a sap. But—” he leaned up to kiss Sirius’ lips—“I love it. Thank you.”

“Good,” Sirius said, kissing him again. “Go ahead and take your coat off and sit by the fire. I’ll get dinner and wine.”

“We’re not eating at the table?”

“And ruin the romantic ambiance I went through all the trouble to create?”

Remus rolled his eyes but laughed anyway, and Sirius tossed him a wink before heading to the kitchen. With a few flicks of his wand, dinner was served onto plates and floated out into the living room in front of Sirius, who carried two glasses and the bottle of wine. Remus caught the plates in midair and guided them to the fireplace hearth, then relieved Sirius of the glasses and wine bottle so he could sit as well. Remus poured them some wine and extended a glass to Sirius, who took it and held it up in a toast. 

“What are we toasting to?” Remus asked, holding his glass up as well.

“I don’t know. I made dinner and dessert. You can make the toast,” Sirius replied cheekily.

Remus shoved him, but then his gaze softened as he looked at him. “Alright, then. To the last five years. I never imagined that I’d get to be with someone quite like you. You’re kind, passionate, brave. You have a fantastic arse—” Sirius laughed at that—“and being with you makes every day of my life better, even when everything was threatening to crumble around us. I love you, and I hope that we can have another five years exactly like the past five.”

They clinked glasses, and Sirius stared unblinkingly as Remus took a sip of his wine. 

“What is it?” Remus asked, setting his glass on the fireplace hearth.

“What about a lifetime?” Sirius asked, setting his wine down as well. 

“What?”

“You said another five years, but what about a lifetime?”

“Pads?” Remus said, tilting his head in confusion as Sirius reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, glittering object. His eyes widened, and his breath left him in a sharp exhale. “Sirius—”

“I was going to wait until after dessert—” Sirius shuffled forward to take Remus’ hand in his. “And you kind of took my speech, so now I’m completely improvising, but I don’t think it really matters. All that matters is that you know how much I love you. Remus Lupin, I fucking adore you, and I would do anything for you. I’d follow you to the ends of the Earth because all I want is to spend every moment of my life with you. So—” Sirius held up the thin gold band, which was embedded with tiny moonstones. 

“Yes.” 

Sirius let out a breathy chuckle. “Are you going to let me actually ask?”

Remus laughed a little wetly. “Sorry, go ahead.”

“Moony, will you marry me?”

He surged forward, wrapping his arms around Sirius’ neck, and kissed him hard. “Yes.” He kissed him again. “Yes, yes, yes,” he said between kisses to his cheeks and jaw. 

Sirius let out a relieved sigh and kissed him quickly before pulling away. He held up the ring and gestured for Remus’ left hand, who extended it with a grin. Sirius kissed his ring finger before slipping on the ring. 

Remus stared at it for a moment before locking eyes with Sirius. “I love it. I love you.”

‘I love you, too, Rem.”

Remus surged forward again, knocking Sirius back to the floor this time, and kissed him fiercely. His hands slid into Sirius’ hair while Sirius’ settled on Remus’ hips. They stayed like that for several minutes until finally, Sirius pulled away. 

“Dinner—” he managed before Remus captured his lips in another kiss. 

“Later,” he mumbled, then slid his hands under Sirius’ jumper.


	29. Champagne

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Do you take Remus to be your husband?”  
> “I solemnly swear.”

###  **December 17, 1983** >

“If anyone has any reasons why these two should not be wed, I was instructed to tell you to ‘shove it’ as Mr. Black so eloquently put it,” Minerva McGonagall said with an air of fond disapproval only she was capable of. There was a small chuckle through the small crowd of close friends and immediate family gathered around them before she continued. “Now, I believe the grooms have prepared their own vows.”

Sirius nodded and smiled at Remus’ shocked expression. “I know, love, we said we weren’t going to do this, so I’ll keep it brief,” he promised. 

Remus let out a little huff and pouted slightly, but squeezed Sirius’ hands where they were clasped between them anyway.

“So, originally I wanted to get married on our anniversary because, as you would say, I’m—”

“A huge sap,” Remus finished for him, and the crowd laughed again.

“Exactly. But you didn’t want to disturb everyone’s holiday. So I settled for and day in December because over the past twelve years, I’ve spent Decembers steadily and surely falling head over heels for you—through every little winter tradition you shared with me, every tradition we created together. I fell throughout the rest of the year, too, but that first December with the candy cane really started the ball rolling.”

Remus squeezed Sirius’ hands tightly and looked at him with shining eyes. “That’s why you were so insistent,” he whispered.

He nodded. “Ultimately, it didn’t matter when it was as long as I got to marry you, but yeah. That’s why.”

“I love you, you wonderful, sappy man.”

“I love you, too, Moons,” Sirius whispered before giving Minerva a nod to continue. 

She nodded and pulled a red, gold, grey, and brown—colors handpicked by the two of them based on their meanings—braided cord with a moon charm and a star charm dangling from either end out from her robe pocket. “Would you please take each other’s left hands? Sirius, place your right hand on top to protect the union, and Remus put your right hand underneath to support it.” She draped the multi-colored cord over their hands. 

Remus looked up into Sirius’ eyes and softly smiled as Minerva continued through the prepared part of their ceremony.

“Will you share in each other’s pain and seek to alleviate it as well as share in each other’s laughter and look for the brightness and positive in one another?”

“We will.”

“And so the binding is made. Will you share each other’s burdens as well as in each other’s dreams so

that your spirits may grow in this union?”

“We will.”

“And so the binding is made. Will you take the heat of anger and use it to temper the strength of this

union?”

“We will.”

And so the binding is made. And will you honor the other as an equal in this union?

“We will.”

“And so, the binding is made. Do you have rings?”

Remus and Sirius both shook their heads. Remus was perfectly content with his moonstone engagement ring, and Sirius had decided on a commemorative tattoo since his job as a Healer made a ring impractical. 

Minerva nodded. “Well, then Remus, do you take Sirius to be your husband?”

Remus smiled up at Sirius, his eyes glinting with joy and mischief. “I solemnly swear.”

Sirius let out a surprised laugh and squeezes Remus’ hands beneath the knotted cord.

“And do you, Sirius, take Remus to be your husband?”

“I solemnly swear.”

“Then, I proudly pronounce you husband and husband. You may—”

Minerva didn’t even finish her sentence before Remus was slipping his hands out of the binding so he could throw his arms around Sirius’ neck and press his lips to Sirius’. 

“Ah, yes, indeed, that,” Minerva said, earning a chuckle from half of the crowd while the other half cheered.

Sirius wrapped his arms around Remus’ waist, pulling him close. They kept the kiss brief and chaste—they were surrounded by family, after all—but when they pulled apart and rested their foreheads together, their breathing was still uneven, not unlike after their first kiss. Sirius smiled as he heard the sound of champagne bottles popping behind him, no doubt James and Peter starting the celebration early. 

Out of the corner of their eyes, they spotted two champagne flutes floating toward them. Remus released his grip on Sirius’ neck to swipe them from the air, then handed one to Sirius, who took it but kept his other hand firmly splayed across Remus’ lower back. 

“Well, Mr. Lupin-Black, cheers,” Remus said, grinning.

“And cheers to you, Mr. Lupin-Black,” Sirius returned, before clinking his glass against Remus’.


	30. Snowman

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sirius and Remus build snowmen with Harry.

###  **December 1, 1984**

“Hey, sweetheart, wake up,” Remus whispered, shaking his husband by the shoulder. When he didn’t stir, he shook him harder. “Pads, wake up.” 

Still no response.

“Padfoot!”

Sirius jolted awake. “What? What’s happening?”

Remus grinned. “Come look outside.”

Sirius picked his watch up from the nightstand to check the time. “Remus, I love you, but it’s 6:30 in the morning. What outside could possibly be so important that you would wake me up two hours before we needed to be up?”

“Just come look,” Remus said, still smiling. 

Sirius sighed and flung the covers off, but there was a hint of a smile on his face as Remus pulled him to the window. Outside, fat snowflakes were falling from the sky, covering the ground with a thick layer of white powder, but besides that, Sirius didn’t see anything that would warrant a 6:30 am wake up call. “What am I looking at here, love? Because all I see is just snow.”

“It’s not _just_ snow,” Remus countered. “It’s the first snowfall of the season.”

Sirius couldn’t help but smile. “You’re cute, you know that?” He said fondly, wrapping an arm around Remus’ waist. “But we’re not at Hogwarts anymore.”

“No, but today is a Harry day, remember?”

Sirius’ face lit up. “Prongslet in the snow.”

Remus nodded. “Prongslet in the snow.”

Unable to fall back asleep, Sirius and Remus got ready for the day and apparated over to the Potter’s several hours earlier than usual for their “Harry day,” aka the one day a month that they take over watching Harry so Lily and James could have a date day. They knocked on the front door, and a half-dressed James answered.

“You’re early.”

“We woke up earlier than usual,” Sirius said, giving Remus a fond look.

“I don’t wanna know,” James said, turning around and walking into the living room of their cottage in Godric’s Hollow. “Harry, your godfathers are here! I’m going to go finish getting dressed.” 

“Uncle Moon Moon and Padfoot!” As James climbed the stairs, a four-year-old boy—the spitting image of James, glassed and all—screeched as he barreled into the living room on a hover broom. He stood on the broom and used its momentum to launch himself at Sirius, who caught him and swung him around. 

“Prongslet! That’s quite a move, there, bud,” Sirius said, settling the boy on his hip, although he was getting to be too big for it.

“You should be careful in the house, though. You wouldn’t want to break any more of your mother’s vases,” Remus scolded playfully. 

“Moon Moon!” Harry made grabby hands at Remus, who scooped him from Sirius’ arms to give him a hug. 

“Thanks for that, Rem,” Lily said, emerging from the kitchen and kissing his cheek. “Glad to know one of you is responsible.”

“Oi!” Sirius protested. “I’m plenty responsible, right, Harry?” 

“No,” Harry said, earning a laugh from Remus as he set Harry down. 

“Well, since you both are here early, would you mind taking him now?” Lily asked, hopefully. “I know it would be a few more hours than usual—”

“More Moon Moon and Padfoot time!” Harry cheered. 

“That was the plan,” Sirius said 

“You’re a literal angel, Sirius Lupin-Black,” Lily said in relief. “Har-bear, why don’t you go get your coat.”

“Actually, a snowsuit may be a better idea for what we have planned,” Remus said. 

“Did it snow?” Lily asked.

“Have you not looked outside today?”

“Snow?” Harry asked excitedly.

“First snowfall of the season,” Sirius informed him. He bent down to look at the toddler at eye level. “Are you ready to participate in a time-honored Hogwarts tradition?”

“Snow!” Harry exclaimed in answer. 

Lily shot Remus a concerned look.

“Perhaps a little something less dangerous than our usual tradition, Pads,” Remus suggested.

Sirius sighed but nodded. “Maybe our own tradition then. Snowmen?” He put forth, glancing at Lily for confirmation. 

“Like Frosty!” Harry said, beaming at his mother. 

“Well, you heard them. Go get your snowsuit, and Uncle Padfoot will help you put it on.” Lily shooed her son up the stairs then turned to Sirius and Remus. “There’s carrots in the fridge and some spare hats and scarves in the front closet for you boys.”

**Author's Note:**

> Follow me on [Tumblr](https://mooncat457writing.tumblr.com/)!


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